Promise you'll be there?
by rippling0water0eyes
Summary: Namine sees Roxas as only a kid with a skateboard, but everything changes when he tries to teach her. NaminexRoxas
1. Chapter 1

It wasn't some huge, romantic thing, at least, not to me. Sure, some of it was sweet, and I loved it, but it wouldn't be the type of dream anyone would wish for. Just the type that sort of... happens. I was sitting on my porch, staring at the sunrise, trying to capture the colors in my mind so I could start a sketch, and up he came. He was on a skateboard, and I didn't pay much attention to him, he just rolled on by, not looking back, not even noticing me. The next day, I was outside again, around the same time, because my sketch hadn't really gotten that far. Actually, I hadn't started yet, but that's a different story.

I was still watching the sky, and I hear the skateboard again. This time, I watched him as he got closer. I couldn't really tell what he looked like, he was kind of at a distance, but as he got closer, I realized he was actually pretty cute. He had blue blue eyes, like... _deep _blue. And brownish blonde hair. He just rolled on by, not looking back, not even noticing me. He looked nice though, like if you talked to him.

For the next few days, I continued to work on my sketch outside, and every day, without fail, he would skate by, until one day, he stopped. My sketch was almost done, I only needed a few more shadings, and I heard that skateboard again. I had my head down, focusing on my art, and it became silent. In an instant, the sound stopped. I thought maybe he fell, so I looked up, but he was just standing in front of my house, staring at me. I looked at him for a little while, then, a little embarrassed, cast my eyes down.

"Hey," his voice was sweet. I looked up at him again, and he waved a little. A faint smile passed my lips as I waved back to him. "Whatcha workin' on?" I looked down at the picture. I was actually kind of pleased with how it had turned out.

"A picture."

"Can I see?"

"Um..."

"Well, it's just that, you know. You've been working on it for a really long time, and I figure it has to be pretty good."

"Oh. Then, I guess, if you want."

"Okay." He smiled and walked up to the porch, but didn't step onto it. He smiled at me over the little wooden railing and held his hand out. I handed him the picture and his smile faded. I guess it didn't look like I thought it did. I leaned over to look at it again, but he turned around, still holding it, and I couldn't see. His head moved up and down for a while. Looking at the picture, then at the sky. Picture, sky, picture, sky. "That's really good." He said, turning and handing it back to me.

"Thanks." He nodded. "So... why are you always skating around here?"

"My best friend lives a couple houses up. His name's Hayner. Do you know him?"

"I think I've seen him before. I'm sorry, what's your name?"

"Oh. Roxas. Sorry."

"It's okay." I was about to tell him my name, when the other boy, presumably "Hayner" ran over to the front of my house, and Roxas turned.

"Hey! Roxas! Where have you been? I haven't seen you in a few days." Roxas tensed, looked back at me, smiled, and ran off with Hayner.

"Bye Namine!" He called, running away.

"What?" I said to myself after he had gone. I hadn't told him my name. And how could Hayner have not seen him if he'd been up the street every day? None of it made sense to me. I took my picture in, because it was a little late, and I decided the reds would have to wait until tomorrow.

When the day finally arrived that I could finish my picture, I started to think back to Roxas. What he had said, and Hayner too. I was actually so caught up in thinking about him, that I forgot my picture inside. I watched the street, almost waiting for him to come. And finally, he did.

He stopped in front of my house again and didn't even wait to say hi. He just picked up his skateboard and walked over to the porch. "Hey. Where's your picture?" I actually hadn't noticed until he said.

"Oh... I just put it inside." I lied. "I just thought the weather was nice, so I came back out."

"Yeah. But it's kind of cold." And actually, it was very cold. The whole time I waited for him, I'd been shivering.

"Yeah. I guess." I decided to ask about yesterday. "Wha–"

He held up his skateboard. "Wanna learn?" He smiled big. I reached out and touched the black part. It felt like sandpaper. I smiled, and nodded. He smiled again. "Alright. Let's go."

"Okay." I stepped off of the porch and walked into the street with him. At first, he tried explaining it to me, showing me little things every now and then, and giving me little hints, but that didn't seem to be working. Soon enough he gave up with that and told me to just stand on the skateboard. I was a little nervous, but I trusted him. I got up on it, but it felt wobbly. "Roxas... this is scary."

"It's okay. It's supposed to do that." He held his hands out to me, and I took them both. He started to pull me. "Just so you get the feel of it." I smiled, still scared. We hit a little rock, and I fell forward, the skateboard shooting back. He caught me, and then laughed a little, running for his board. When he came back, breathing a little more heavily from the run, he urged me to try again. "Come on. I promise not to let you fall again." I shook my head.

"No."

"Please?" I tried to resist, but eventually gave in.

"You can't let me fall, though!"

"I promised I wouldn't." I stood up on the board and this time, he took me by the waist. I fought a blush, and he told me to hold onto his forearms, that way I would be secure. I did, and we were actually able to get a little ways before I told him I wanted to get off again. He smiled. "Yeah okay. Besides, I can come back tomorrow and help you some more."

I knew I had to get in soon, but I wanted to make sure he would come. "Promise you'll be there?"

"Yeah, sure. Promise you'll wait?"

"Of course."

As time slowly passed, Roxas and I became friends. We started to talk on the phone, and walk together. Over time I found out that he had learned my name by the signing on the bottom of my picture, and that he would always ask Olette how I was in class that day, because we had history together. As such, I started to get along with his friends. Every weekend, Roxas would give me little lessons on skateboarding, and every now and then I'd draw him a picture. However, the closer we got, the happier I felt around him, until eventually, I developed a liking for him. A very strong liking.

On one particular day, Roxas came to my house to help me with skateboarding. Although it had been a while since he had done so, he took me by the waist when I stepped up. I smiled, unaware of what he was thinking, but my thoughts were very plain. He pulled me, a little faster than usual, and soon, like always, I started to fall. I didn't think anything of it, because he always caught me, but today was a little different. Instead of waiting for the skateboard to leave my feet, Roxas picked me up, and turned, putting me down on the ground beside him, but still holding my waist. I averted my gaze, trying so hard not to blush, and when I looked up, he blushed, and stepped away.

"I... didn't want to have to chase the skateboard again." He shrugged. "Um... see you tomorrow?"

"Wait," It was a cold day today, like the first time he taught me. "Do you maybe want to come in for some hot chocolate?"

"I can't. Sorry. Maybe tomorrow, though."

"Roxas,"

"Yeah, Namine?"

"Promise you'll be there?"

"Yeah sure." He turned back. "Promise you'll wait?"

"Of course."


	2. Chapter 2

Okay, so I'm back! With Chapter two of a oneshot!!! haha, that sounds funny. Oh well. Here it is. Chapter two, like I said. It's a little longer than chapter one, and not much happens, but hopefully, the next chapter will be more eventful. I realized the other day, that I have like... never done a disclaimer. So... for my first one EVER!!!!

disclaimer: I don't own anything. cry cry

Eventually, after a very restless and impatient night, I sat up in my bed. Having no sleep was certainly taking its toll on me, and I pressed my hands gently to my temples, sighing deeply as I began to rub small circles into my skin. It was relaxing. I couldn't say that the steaming water of the shower was enough to really wake me up, despite the fact that I couldn't have woken, from having lacked the necessary sleep from which I was to arouse, but it visibly helped me to overcome my groggy behavior. Remembering what was to come today, I rushed back to my room to get dressed. Although, I couldn't say honestly that I had ever really forgotten.

I was almost disappointed in myself. I knew there was no way I wanted to skateboard so badly. I knew what I wanted. _Who _I wanted. I wanted to see Roxas. Thoughts of him had kept me awake all night, and, embarrassed at myself, I disregarded the knowledge to the thought that Roxas was merely an infatuation of my own. But I knew I was lying to myself. Pressing the cause of my unrest from my mind, I quickly rummaged through my neatly organized closet until I found an outfit that was both comfortable and cute.

A pair of light blue shorts matched perfectly with the ribbon I tied into my hair to hold it in the low ponytail, falling over the edge of my shoulder. I quickly pulled on a white halter top that I tied tightly at the back of my neck, and slipped on a pair of white sandals. I glanced into the full body mirror by my door to make sure that the top looked okay on me. It did. I smiled at my reflection. It was hard to keep myself from thinking that Roxas would notice the clothes I had chosen, though, I tried to believe he wasn't the reason I chose them. I had nothing to prove. Nobody to impress.

Smiling, contentedly, I picked up my sketchbook and pencil bag. Out of habit, I closed the bedroom door behind me, but faltered, and opened it up again, only to pop back in, grab a cropped baby blue hoodie and leave the room again. I hurried down the steps and into the kitchen, dropping my things to the table and pushing my arms through the long sleeves of the hoodie. I greeted my dad with a light kiss on the cheek and asked my standard morning question, only to receive my standard morning answer.

"Where's mom?" I inquired, with enough interest to convince him, had he been paying any attention rather than reading the newspaper to find the news he had already read in editing the articles the previous day at work.

He took a short sip of his coffee, black, as usual, finishing off what was left in his mug and without looking up responded, "Still sleeping. She should wake up," He took a fleeting look at the clock on the oven. "In about a half an hour." I nodded absently to myself, and picked up the pot of coffee, walking over to my father and refilling his cup. "Thank you, dear." He said, and I returned the pot to its place. He looked up, for the first time acknowledging me, and gave my outfit a once over. "Going out?" He presumed, and forced what could only be considered a grimace at best.

Much to my father's pleasure, I had never had an actual date, and he intended to make his feelings very clear about his intentions on keeping it that way. Just to press him, I smiled wryly. "Yes, daddy, I am. What do you think? Do I look okay?" I held my arms out a little, spinning around twice, and smiled expectantly at him.

"You... look... beautiful." He said, impelling himself to be supportive. "So, who is this boy?" He inquired in a more serious tone, his "smile" falling from his features.

I laughed slightly. "Don't worry, daddy. I'm not going out with anyone, today." I made my way to the table, hugging him once I was able. He groaned and patted my arm, stubbornly. "I'm just going to sketch a few pictures out front, and wait for a friend to come by."

"Oh, now? Who are you waiting for? Kairi? Olette? Selphie?"

"Roxas," I answered, promptly. He raised an eyebrow. It occurred to me then that my father had never met Roxas. Or Sora, Hayner, Pence, Riku, Wakka, or Tidus for that matter. Only the girls had ever come inside my house. My father, by the look on his face, hadn't even the slightest inclination that I _had_ male friends. I opened my mouth, frantically trying to explain, but nothing came out.

"Roxas? Who is Roxas?" It would have been difficult to ignore the anger that flickered in his eyes as he spoke the name.

"Daddy, relax," I found that I sounded much more calm than I felt, and that relieved me, but I suddenly wondered if my expression was pulling it off, as well. I could see on his face that he had indeed _not _relaxed. "He's just a friend of a friend," I lied. "Olette knows him. He's teaching me to skateboard," I could not say that I was shamelessly lying, because I felt absolutely horrible just telling my father what he wanted to hear.

I knew the alternatives. I could tell my father what was really going on. I liked this boy, he was a good friend of mine, along with the six other boys I met through him. If I told him the truth, though, he would want to meet _all _of these boys, and he would buckle down on my privileges, because that's the type of person my dad is. Strict. Protective. I decided the lie would work better for now. Later, I would consult my mother and find the best way to straighten out my messes.

"Your other friends are going to be there, right? They aren't leaving you alone with this boy?"

"Daddy, please. I'm old enough to be alone with a boy and still be responsible. Don't you trust me?"

"You said that he was just a friend of a friend, correct?" I paused, thinking back to the lie I had fed him and confirmed, with a nod, that this was what I had said. "Meaning you don't know him very well, right?" Again, I nodded, uncertainly this time. "Then how do you know you can trust _him_?"

I rolled my eyes, knowing better of Roxas than to do the things my father was implying. "Fine, dad. If it makes you feel better, we won't skate today. When he comes over, we'll go get the others, that way, we can all hang out together, okay?"

He smiled slightly, knowing he had won. "That's my girl." I sighed and, leaving my sketching materials on the table, exchanged them for my cell phone instead. I had texted Roxas the night before, asking him when he would be by my house. He responded with seven a.m. I never knew he woke up so early. It was all just as well for me, seeing as the time now was 7:06. I rushed out the front door, but he was nowhere. I sat down on a chair in the front porch, pulling my legs up to my chest and flipping open my cell phone. I went through the numbers and smiled, knowing that when Kairi received her text, she would hate me absolutely for waking her up.

**Wakey, wakey! Eggs and bakey!**

As I waited for her reply, I went through my numbers again, deciding that Olette would be up, and I couldn't wake Selphie if I tried. When I was about to enter my message to Olette, a reply bubble popped up from Kairi. I smiled.

**I hbte v.**

I laughed. Apparently, Kairi wasn't a morning person. She seemed lethargic in her texting habits, at least when she had suffered through an untimely waking from her slumbers.

**Sry. what r u up 2?**

A minute went by and my phone beeped twice.

**Sleeping, stupid. u?**

I frowned. It wasn't exactly on my to do list that I gain pity from my friends through them knowing that I was waiting for Roxas.

**Sitting outside. booooored.**

**Story of my life. doin anything 2day?**

**Not really. u got plans?**

**Just made them.**

**With who?**

**U, silly.**

She sent a little happy face, and I knew that she had officially decided to join the conscious world. It was a step up from talking to a disgruntled half-asleep zombie.

**Hows it gonna happen?**

**Stop by my house whenever. we can get s and o when u get here.**

**k.**

And that was the last of our messages. I sat outside, impatiently waiting for Roxas, until I realized, two hours later, that he wasn't coming. Around eight thirty, I dragged myself back into my house. My mother was rummaging about in the kitchen, looking for something in cabinets that probably would never be found there. I did not want to find my father.

"Mom," I started, and she turned. I cracked a small smile, despite myself, when I saw that her front was covered in flour and there was a chocolatey smear across her cheek. "What are you looking for?"

"I'm looking for vanilla. I'm baking cookies," She answered, proudly. My mother was not one to bake. Ever. Even covered in fine white powder, she was beautiful. She had long, golden hair, not quite as light as mine, that was currently puled up into a messy ponytail, strands falling out around the frame of her gentle face. Her smile separated her full, pink lips and showed her prefect, impossibly white teeth. Unlike me, however, her body had figure. She was taller than me, with sparkling light green eyes.

"The vanilla is on the second shelf on the right side of the pantry," I said absently, walking over to the counter where a bowl sat with more of a concoction than a cookie recipe. She nodded and disappeared into the pantry, returning seconds later with a small bottle of vanilla extract. Unscrewing the lid, she emptied about half the bottle into the bowl. My face scrunched in disgust. "Mom," I said, turning back to her, and she stopped.

"Yes, dear?"

"Will you drive me to Kairi's?" She looked at me, pursing her lips, then at the bowl on the counter.

"I suppose I could," She said, smiling. I couldn't help but smile back. We walked out to the garage and I opened the door on the passengers side of my mother's red minivan. I slid into the car and buckled my seatbelt, shifting uncomfortably under its security. My mother slipped into the car silently and turned the key in the ignition before shutting her door. Once she buckled her seatbelt and began backing out, she asked me to turn off the radio.

I was a little more than surprised, because my mother never drove without the soft jazz humming in the background, but I did as she asked and we were soon on our way. "Is anything the matter, Nami?" She asked me, sweetly, when we were out of our neighborhood. I watched the trees fly by and the scenery changing from houses, to a movie theater, a mall, grocery stores, and many other buildings. I ignored her question. "Your daddy mentioned something about a boy meeting you today. Does this have anything to do with him?"

"Maybe," My mother was so easy to talk to that I actually found myself lurching into explanations of everything that had happened since I met Roxas. I noticed several times that we were in Kairi's neighborhood, but that my mother was just driving in circles, listening to my story, until it ended with this mornings happenings, or lack there of.

"So this boy stood you up?" She asked, quietly. I knew she was only trying not to hurt my feelings with the way she worked her words around the questions.

"It wasn't a date," I said, regretfully.

"Mm. Well, we're here." I thanked her and unbuckled once the car came to a stop, opening my door and letting myself out. I heard the car window being lowered behind me, and I turned back. "You can talk to me, later, if you'd like to." She smiled, and I thanked her again, finally making my way to Kairi's door.

I rang the doorbell, still not comfortable with Kairi's request that I just "walk right in, and make yourself at home". She answered the door, and greeted me warmly.

"Was it just me, or did your mom drive by like a bazillion times before she stopped?" She asked, once we were walking down the street, approaching Selphie's house.

"Yeah, she was talking to me." Better to leave out the fact that I was the only one doing any actual talking.

"Dang, she must have really blabbed, huh?" She shrugged. "Oh well, your mom is so cool, I bet you had fun talking with her." I waved off the question, quickening my pace as I half skipped to Selphie's door, Kairi waiting patiently at the curb.

Selphie bounded out of the door before I even reached it, and smiled, instantly scanning my apparel three times. "Cute. Maybe I could borrow the shoes, sometime." I smiled and nodded.

"Whenever you want." The three of us laughed and joked until we made our way into the next area of houses, where lived Olette, Pence, and Roxas. We were just about half of the way up the street when the cutesy ring of my cell phone went off. I paused my walking to dig through my pocket for the source of the noise. I noticed the number, sighed, and flipped the phone open.

"Hi, daddy," I greeted.

"So, your mother told me you called that boy and told him you would rather have a girls day." I smiled, shaking my head. I loved my mother, so much. "Why is that?"

"I don't know, daddy. Your words, really got to me," I said sarcastically, and he laughed on the other end.

"Okay, okay. I just wanted to make sure that we knew where you were."

"Well," I pressed the phone against my chest, and asked Kairi and Selphie what we were going to do, today. Once they agreed, I returned the phone to my ear. "We were thinking we could go to the mall."

"Do you have money?"

"Yeah, thanks. But we're getting Olette, now, so I'm gonna go. Bye."

"Bye. I love you."

"Love you, too." I flipped my phone closed and continued on my way, Selphie and Kairi on either side of me. We waited out in front of Olette's house when Roxas emerged from his front door, carrying his skateboard under one arm. My laughter ceased immediately as I stared at him. Kairi and Selphie looked back, too.

"Hey, Roxas!" Selphie yelled, waving. Kairi smiled his way. He looked up, saw me, and paused. We just looked at each other, and he mouth sorry, then took off on his skateboard, without looking back. My face fell. Kairi and Selphie looked back, too insulted to notice that I was upset, which was something I felt utterly thankful for. Olette emerged from the house, and I could tell by her expression that she knew something was wrong. She didn't say anything, though she looked at me expectantly, and I ignored her concerned glances. We started off in the direction Roxas had left in, taking the shortest route to the mall we could find, and walked for about ten minutes.

When we arrived, a familiar car was just pulling up. We paused out of habit to wait for it, and when it parked, Riku, Sora, Tidus, and Pence walked toward us. We all said our hellos, then started off into the mall as one large group, laughing and talking about our teachers or inside jokes, Tidus imitating Wakka's brags of finally getting his licence, and Sora trying hard to be polite by not laughing. Pence had his camera, as always, and whenever someone least expected it, he'd take a candid photo and snicker as they yelled at him for the same old things for which he was always chastised.

My mood was just rising when out of the corner of my eye, I spotted a familiar blonde boy talking with a not so familiar blonde girl.


	3. Chapter 3

_My mood was just rising when out of the corner of my eye, I spotted a familiar blonde boy talking with a not so familiar blonde girl._

She looked to be a few years older than us, and she was extremely gorgeous. I was sure I'd have recognized her if I had seen her at school. Suddenly saddened, I turned to Kairi. "Kai," I said, quietly, leaning in. She caught the drift and stopped walking, letting the others get farther ahead of us.

"What's up?" She asked, in the same hushed tone I was using.

"Who's that girl Roxas is talking to?" I asked, pointing to the store they were in front of. The girl's hair was short and blonde, brushed back and accenting her bright green eyes. She smiled familiarly at Roxas, and poked his forehead, saying something that I couldn't quite hear, then laughing as Roxas replied, calmly brushing her hand away. She wore a pair of regular blue jeans and a short sleeve black shirt, that hugged her curves.

"I'm not sure. We could go ask him, you know." Kairi grabbed my arm and began to pull me over before I could protest. The blonde girl raised a brow and glanced over at us, curiously, mumbling something quietly to Roxas, and smiling deviously. He turned, and flushed when he saw us. "Hi, Roxas. Who's your friend?" Kairi asked sweetly. I stood, reddened, I'm sure, staring at the girl, who stared smugly right back.

"I'm Larxene," She intervened in a voice that was smooth, but not so kind. I looked away, trying hard to avoid Roxas's eyes. "And you are?"

"I'm Kairi, and this is Namine," Kairi motioned to me with a swift movement of her hand. Larxene snickered almost inaudibly. But I heard her. Roxas mumbled something, and I thought I heard the word kill somewhere in there, but I didn't say anything. "So, how do you know Roxas?"

"Chill out, Kairi. I'm not hitting on your precious boyfriend." I was almost nauseated. "I'm just messing around with little Roxie."

Roxas blurted out "Don't call me that!" At the same time Kairi said, plainly "I'm not his girlfriend."

"So, why did you drag your little friend over?" Larxene asked, referring to me. "She obviously doesn't want to be here."

"That makes two of us," Roxas spat and Larxene frowned.

"Aw, come on, Roxie. Didn't you miss me at all? You can't really act like you hate me that much. What did I ever do to you?"

Roxas didn't answer her, instead, I looked up to find a red haired boy and another blonde come walking up beside me. I cringed away, bumping Kairi slightly. They looked at me, staring confused for a moment, then at Kairi, then Roxas, and finally Larxene.

"Larxene, are you being nice to Roxie and his friends?" The blonde asked. Larxene scowled.

"Shut up, Demyx. Go away."

"Hi Axel. Hey Demyx," Roxas said, ignoring Larxene completely. "What are you guys doing here?"

"Well actually, we came up for an um... 'break' from school around Tuesday. We were going home, today, but we were gonna stop by your place after the mall. Say hi and whatever."

"Is anyone else here?" Roxas asked. He made it obvious he wanted no for an answer. Kairi and I stood by watching the whole scene unfold, making no movements to draw attention to ourselves, and it seemed like the others had never even seen us.

"Relax, Roxas." The redhead, presumably Axel, said, smiling. "We came up alone. So, who _are _your friends?" He asked, glancing down at us. He was rather tall, and I assumed that Kairi, Roxas, and I were by far the youngest ones here.

Roxas sighed. "Kairi and Namine." Kairi smiled. I didn't.

"Hi. I'm Kairi." They smiled and introduced themselves, while Larxene folded her arms and walked away toward some bookstore. They turned to me, and realizing my shyness, introduced themselves shortly and awaited no response.

"So Roxas," Axel began again. "We're getting out of here pretty soon. Are you gonna visit us anytime soon? Castle Oblivion is pretty quiet without you."

Roxas smiled, slightly. "Sorry. I don't think so. I've got a lot going on here."

"And little Roxie is afraid to ditch every now and then," Demyx said, jokingly.

Roxas sneered and said, "And little Roxie might just mention to Xemnas where his three favorite students have been for their extended weekend." Axel slapped Demyx in the back of the head and Kairi pulled me off again, following Roxas.

"Roxas, who were they?" Kairi asked, releasing my hand.

"Axel and Demyx were my friends from where I used to live. Larxene was... not."

"Who is she?" I asked, despite the fact that I had no desire to be speaking to Roxas right now. He glanced at me, worriedly, but kept on with his explanation.

"Axel's girlfriend. I don't know why he dates her, she's a total–"

"Hey!" We all looked up at Sora's voice. "Where did you guys go?" We continued walking, merging once again with the large group we entered in plus Roxas. "And when did he get here?" Sora asked, pointing in mock disgust at his cousin.

"Kairi and Namine found me." Roxas said, leaving out the other details. "I must be stupid to think I can go anywhere without you guys."

"Yeah, you must be." Riku joked, and we all started off again. After a few hours of shopping, and avoiding Roxas, on my part, we ended up where we always do. The food court. We picked a table in the corner, which was barely big enough to fit us all (with the addition of the two chairs that the guys pulled over), and split up, all of them heading to different food places. I stayed at the table, not hungry at the moment, and made sure that nobody else sat there. Roxas was the first one back.

He was the only one to go to the burger place, which was the only place with no line, and even then, he only got french fries. "Are you mad at me?" He asked, when I didn't look up at him.

"No," I replied, quietly. "What do I have to be mad about?" I asked, thinking that he must have done something that I hadn't found out about yet.

"Well, I don't know, but you've hardly said anything to me all day." He sounded concerned, like he cared about what I thought of him. It was refreshing to know I was capable of hurting him, but also sad, in a way.

"I'm sorry." Was all I said. I really didn't want to talk to him after what he had made me feel.

"Namine, come on. Talk to me."

"I have nothing to say," I lied. The fact was, if he _did _convince me to talk to him, I'd probably just end up yelling at him and saying things I didn't mean. He pressed no further, because Pence and Olette sat back down at the table, talking and smiling. I plastered on one of my own, and spoke to them normally, casually slipping out of converse when Roxas would casually slip in. I knew I was being rude. In totality, I didn't say a word to Roxas when the others were around today, not that I spoke much to him when they were gone. I hadn't wanted to explain my disappointment to them, and I didn't want to end up crying in front of Roxas once I told him how much it hurt to have him, as my mother had said "stand me up".

"Namine, you're awfully quiet over there," Selphie pointed out, with a face full of orange chicken. I had been avoiding the conversation that the rest of them were having, because Roxas was quite active in the discussion. I looked up from the empty table before me and unfolded my hands, bringing them up to the top of the table. Roxas was looking down at his fries, absentmindedly moving one in circles in the ketchup, not eating it, or putting it down. He seemed to be focused on some internal conflict. I wondered if he could possibly be thinking about me.

"Are you okay?" Sora asked, gently placing his hand on mine. I have to say, out of everyone in the group, Sora had to be the first one I would pick to talk to if I was ever upset. He was always so gentle and loving, and he really felt like an older brother to me, sometimes. Of course he was nice to everyone, but he always made me feel like I was the only person in the world he paid attention to, even though everyone (but Kairi) knew he paid the most attention to Kairi.

I smiled up at him, feeling, like always, so much better just because he was here, and pulled my hand slowly out from under his. His face changed for just a second, and I knew he saw past my facade. His phone beeped, and surprised, he dug it out of his pocket. He smiled. "Hayner wants to know where we are. Him and Wakka are just sitting at his house." Everyone but Roxas and I laughed, but he didn't make the same effort as I, to at least smile for the others.

"Well, let's get going." Riku grumbled, throwing away the trash left on his tray, then stacking it on top of the trash can. Following his example, the others stood, and I followed them out of the mall. Riku's car seated seven. There were eight of us. I volunteered to walk, so that the rest of them could drive, but they insisted that somebody go with me, ignoring my protests and rejections. Sora, knowing how "fond I was of him" volunteered Roxas to go. Before either of us could say anything more, they piled in the car and drove off.


	4. Chapter 4

disclaimer(??)- yeah, I own nothing but the parents. And they aren't much fun to own. -.-'

_Before either of us could say anything more, they piled in the car and drove off._

"So," Roxas began again. He had been desperately trying to get me talking ever since the others had left us, and I had yet to respond to anything. He sighed. "You look nice."

I offered a glance at my outfit, and flushed when I remembered that I had picked it out to impress him. But my chagrin morphed into mild anger when I remembered that the clothing had gone to waste when _somebody _had abandoned our plans for the morning. He lifted one arm in a motion not unlike one of his cousin's to scratch the back of his head. I took a deep breath and let it all out with a big whooshing sound as I tried not to appraise how cute he looked when he did that.

"Namine," Judging by the tone he was using, I would say that he was going to give up soon, and I took comfort in that knowledge, because each time he spoke, I came closer and closer to responding to him. "I'm sorry I broke my promise." I was startled. My steps faltered, but I kept moving, and I ended up with hardly enough time to catch my fall. I shrugged off the hand Roxas had placed on my arm to steady me. "Is that what all this is about?" Again, I refused to answer, but even with my mouth clamped shut, I almost responded. "Because, I had a reason."

"Oh really? What was it?" I blurted out, sarcastically. He looked at me, with a slight pink hue on his cheeks and I realized he hadn't expected me to speak. He thought he wouldn't have to offer a reason for his lack of action. Well, now I was going to demand an answer, and whether or not he liked it, I was going to get one. "Well, Roxas?" I folded my arms over my chest and did a fair job of hiding the relief I felt at speaking to him again, even if I was angry.

"I..." His voice faded away nearly as quickly as it had come when Riku pulled up beside us in his car, beaming steadily.

"We're all at Sora's place. You guys want a ride?" I took one look at Roxas, who was staring at me apologetically, and nodded quickly to Riku. He offered me the front seat, and I took it. "Sorry it took so long. I passed you guys, I guess. I wasn't paying too much attention and I thought you would be farther back. Usually, when _you two _are together, menial tasks take forever. I wonder why," He said, his voice heavy with implications. I rolled my eyes and blew out a puff of frustration.

Both boys noticed. I feigned a sweet smile at Riku. "Thanks for doubling back, Riku. I was really getting kind of tired of walking," I said, pulling my legs up onto the seat.

I could see, plainly, the confusion that laced his features, but he nodded anyway, then chanced a wasted glance at Roxas. I did too, only to find that he was too busy being distant to even notice us. My hard eyes softened for just a moment on him, and I wondered if I really had what it took to stay mad at someone like him. I decided that as long as I could fake it, I didn't really need to be mad. I just wanted his reason, and if it didn't kill me, I just might forgive him.

"Well," Riku droned, stretching the word out to last five long seconds. "Something happened to make this extremely awkward." We pulled up in front of Sora's house and Riku put the car in park, then removed the key from the ignition. "I trust you guys to work it out." He stepped out of the car and slammed his door. I wasted no time getting out, either. Roxas exited on the opposite side of the vehicle. Riku waited for me by the door, knowing that I wouldn't just walk in if I had to go in alone. Roxas smiled a little.

Roxas closed the door behind him and a head popped out from around the corner. It was Sora's mother. She smiled sweetly at us, motioned with a bob of her head to the hall, and disappeared back into the kitchen, where from sweet smelling pies drifted fruity scents. I inhaled deeply, and smiled imaging the scent my mothers "cookies" would give off when I returned to my own home.

The three of us walked through the hall and through a door that opened directly to a staircase, leading down into a basement. We descended the steps, like every other time we came here, to a colorful game room. I took in the familiarly vibrant colors of the walls, the mismatched dark blue sofa in front of the large, flat screen television, and the sounds of small clicks when the ping pong ball hit the table, paddle, table, table, paddle. I looked around to locate each of my friends, though it wasn't particularly difficult. Tidus and Wakka were the two at the ping pong table, Sora and Hayner, soon joined by Riku, were sitting on the floor in front of the tv, Pence was at a table in the corner, with a bazillion different photos laid out in front of him, and Kairi, Selphie, and Olette were sitting on the couch, each hugging a different pillow, each pillow of a different color, and talking about who knows what girly things.

Roxas remained by my side. To evade him, and also to join a beloved friend, I hurried to the table in the corner. It was equipped with only two chairs. I sat across from Pence, and he looked up at me, smiling. "Hey," He greeted. "How was the walk?"

"Ugh, I couldn't get in that car fast enough." He laughed.

"Well, at least you had Roxas with you." I looked across the room at the named boy and watched him watching me for just a moment.

"I suppose." There were a number of giggles emerging from the couch, and I noticed that Kairi was trying to wave me over. I looked at Pence, and he smiled and waved me off. I thanked him quickly, and stood, walking to the couch as Roxas replaced me on the chair across from Pence. I knew he'd be asking him about me. "What's up?" I asked them, and they each smiled at me warmly.

"Namine, do you like anyone?" Selphie asked, grinning. I was taken aback by her straight to the point behavior and I wavered for a moment, debating on whether or not I should tell them the truth. They were my friends, after all. I deliberated no more after looking over each of their faces.

"No," Kairi frowned and looked away, and Olette just smiled helpfully. Although I would have thought it impossible, Selphie's grin widened.

"Good."

"Why?" I asked, suddenly wishing I had told them how I felt about a certain blonde haired boy not quite too far behind me. "What did I just get myself into?" I wanted to back away, but because I had lied, I felt obligated to stand before them, at the very least.

"Well," Selphie said, urging me to sit. I hesitantly walked around the couch and picked up the last pillow, a soft white with an iridescent hue, and hugged it close to my chest as I nestled in between Selphie and Olette. "I have a friend that's been having some girl troubles lately," I sighed. This was most definitely _not _the track I wanted to be on, but I listened dutifully, pretending to be interested in the words she was saying. "He's from another school, and he has a _little _of an attitude, but once you really get to know him, he's great. Plus he's _really _hot."

"Selphie," I said, slowly. "I'm really sorry, but I don't think I'm gonna be able to um... get to know your friend." Not that I really was sorry about disagreeing the whole blind date thing, especially since Selphie was setting it up, but I did feel bad to be letting down a friend of a friend, even if he did have... "attitude problems". Her face fell, and I tried to make her feel better. "Well, it's not that I wouldn't like to, you know? He sounds," I fished for a word that would be both honest, and nice, but struggled for a minute to locate just the right phrasing. "Like the guy from the movies, but... my dad would absolutely _freak _if he ever found out I was interested in a guy." That last part was one hundred percent honest. My father would just as soon rather have the boy dead in his garden then on a date with me, especially if he thought the guy had an attitude.

"I guess I'll just have to tell him I tried then."

"I'm really sorry," I said again.

"But really," She began, seeming to forget all about the previous discussion. "You don't like _anyone_?" Olette leaned over a little, and Kairi tuned back into the conversation.

"Not um... like someone how?"

"What do you mean _how_?" Selphie asked, falling all over the words. "I mean, do you like a guy?"

"Well," I didn't want to lie to them twice, but they had been friends with Roxas so much longer than they had been friends with me, and if I told them, they might turn around and tell _him _what I had said. But I had to trust them. Or at least try to. "I guess I do." The tensity in the air grew as they hung on, waiting for an explanation, or moreover, waiting for a name. "He um..."

"Spit it out, Namine! Who do you like?" All heads turned our way, and I buried my face in my pillow. Selphie had _such _a big mouth. I felt for the first time, a sort of animosity towards somebody. I wasn't generally a violent person, but as of now, as I felt the tenth and final gaze land on me, the gaze I _knew _belonged to the very boy I would have killed for, I felt as though I could wring the brains right out of Selphie's head, no matter how short the stock of said brains may be.

With my face still painfully squished into Sora's pillow, I couldn't see anything going on around me. I trusted Olette when she told me that the boys had all left the basement for a minute, and I nodded, mumbling the name through the thick fabric trying to force its way into my mouth. "What?" Kairi asked.

I moved my face out just a little, and I'm sure the particular shade of red that it was clashed greatly with my outfit. "Roxas," I nearly whispered, and then shoved my face back into the pillow, shaking my head hard as I endured pointless squeals, a few "I told you so,"s and even an "I knew it!" or two. "But you can't tell anyone!" I screamed. I knew that despite the pillows muffling, they understood and would abide, because their screaming stopped and only a few poorly stifled giggles emerged. I finally peeled my face from the pillow, staring dumbly into the emptiness of the room. Part of me expected the boys' gawking faces, and so I looked behind us, once, to make sure that the coast really was clear. I was safe.

"You two are gonna be _so _happy together!" Selphie squeaked, trying to be quiet.

"What are you talking about?" I snapped, trying hard not to glare at her for what she had done.

"Well, it's _obvious _he likes you, isn't it?"

"Selph," Kairi said, smiling. "It's not our story to tell whether or not we know, I mean _think_," The catch was so obviously planned. "That Roxas likes Namine."

My face warmed, once more and I pressed my chin down into the pillow, which was on top of my knees, as my arms held it in place. Only Olette made no comments, and gathered me in an awkward embrace as I sulked beside her. "Don't worry, Namine. I'm sure there's some kind of chemistry between you two." I thanked her in a mumble and stood, preparing to return to the privacy of my own home, and leave Roxas, and any other nosy boys behind.

"Where you going?" Kairi asked, suddenly saddened, and stood up with me.

"Home," I said dryly. "I don't really want to be around Roxas right now."

"We're not gonna tell him," Selphie defended. "And I know that he won't just figure it out."

I looked over my shoulder at her. "That's not why." I began to walk toward the stairs, but the three of them followed.

"Hey, you," Kairi started, touching my shoulder.

"We're inviting ourselves over for a sleep over," Olette said. I could tell by her voice that she was smiling slightly, the encouraging smile she always wore.

"Not optional," Selphie informed, and I smiled a little. I loved my friends. So pushy, so nosy, so perfect. We stepped out through the door and the laughter and talking stopped, all eyes finding their way to me, but the other three girls just pushed and pulled my along.

My eyes met with Roxas's and I held his gaze for a moment, before Selphie pushed hard on my shoulder, and I turned forward, again.

"We're going to Namine's to spend the night. Call us whenever." Kairi said. "Goodbye, Mrs. Hikari! Thank you so much for everything!" She bid us good day without so much as glancing in our direction, and before I knew it, we were off, walking down the street. Kairi flipped open her pink cell phone and dialed a number, smiling when a woman answered. "Hello, Sarah," My mother insisted that my friends call her by her first name, because being called Mrs made her feel old. My name, Namine, came from my father, in memory of my late grandmother, Nami. Although I was technically one quarter Japanese, I looked nothing like my father. I was confused, to say at the least, that Kairi had called my mother. What would they talk about? "Olette, Selphie, and I were going to have a sort of an..." She pursed her lips. "Intervention in the form of a sleep over at your house tonight. We feel Namine needs us, and we don't want to let her down, however, we could never impose, and so we were just calling to–" She smiled the smile she used when she got her way. "I knew you would understand. Thank you so much."

She closed her phone, then paused, and sat down. Olette and Selphie sat, too, but I was a little more curious. "What did she say?" I inquired, dumbly.

"She's picking us up."

"So... what now?"

"Now," Kairi said in a smooth voice, smiling up at me with glistening blue eyes to rival my own. "We wait."

---

boring, and uneventful, as always. but oh well, I gotta start somewhere, right? Oh well, tre lame-o ending, as mine always seem to be, but the next chapter is a sleep over, so it should be FUN! _cough, choke, die_ and "fun" is my sad way of attempting to be un-lame. thanks for reading! hope you enjoy!!! gawd, I always sound so retarded when I try to type rants. Ill always say something stupid like... "I hate this blah" or something mondo lame-cakes to that effect. because even if it's true, you guys shouldn't have to hear it, you know? Blah. with a capital B. rant, over.


	5. Chapter 5

"_Now," Kairi said in a smooth voice, smiling up at me with glistening blue eyes to rival my own. "We wait."_

We had been waiting for my mother no longer than a few minutes when she pulled up. I noticed that she had cleaned herself up a little, but there were still trace amounts of flour identifiable in her blonde hair. She smiled warmly at us as we entered the car. I took the passenger seat, and Kairi, Selphie, and Olette sat together in the back, whispering and murmuring quietly among themselves.

"Well, Nami, you girls are going to be _quite _pleased with me." My mother said, smiling as she turned the corner out of the housing area we were previously in. I gave her a sideways glance.

"And why is that?" I asked, rather curious.

"Well," She said, excitedly, and I couldn't help but giggle. My friends in the back seat hushed to listen, as well. "For the first time ever," She paused, to build anticipation, and we all waited, smiling, her lengthy pause working its magic quite simply. "I successfully finished baking my cookies!" A small snicker escaped my lips, and I glanced back at my friends, whose faces were horror stricken with the thought of eating something baked by my mother.

"Did you um..." I tried desperately to contain my laughter, barely succeeding. I nearly choked on the nest word. "Taste them?"

"Of course not!" She nearly shouted, taking her eyes off the road, and stiffening her shoulders as she stared at me in shock.

"Mom! What's wrong?" She looked as though she had seen a ghost. Her pale skin was even paler than usual, and her eyes were wide.

"I wouldn't _dream _of tasting them before you and your friends! Why do you think I was even baking? I need recipes so that we aren't the only house without snacks when the eleven of you come over." My mother knew about the boys, only because she had no job, and was normally the person to drive me to each of their houses. She made a point to always offer rides to anyone who couldn't find one, even if they were out of the way, and she learned all of their names, along with their parents.

"Mom, I don't think we..." I looked back again, and Selphie was making a big X with her arms, shaking her head back and forth, while Kairi pretended not to have heard the conversation, and Olette smiled tentatively, prepared to be supportive of my mother when the time came. I sighed and looked forward again, my previous humor of the situation lost to cookie timers and clinking dishes. We pulled up to the house.

"Alright, girls. Have fun, and if you need me, I'll be home all day." My mother smiled and left us by the car. We stood outside just for a little while, Kairi and Selphie still whispering a little, Olette smiling at me silently. I didn't know what to expect from them, but I knew that I had to expect _something_.

"Well, what are we just standing out here for?" Kairi asked suddenly.

I shrugged and we made our way to the door, pushing it open and stepping inside to the cooler air of the house. I unzipped the cropped blue jacket I had worn and shrugged out of it, draping it over my arm and looking back at my friends. They smiled at me, and we hurried up the stairs, hesitant about venturing into the kitchen. My father, apparently having heard the commotion of so many pairs of feet on the stairs leaned out of his study, across the hall from the upstairs bathroom. We smiled at him, and he greeted us, then proceeded to shut the door and continue reading, or working, or whatever it is that went on behind that desk of his.

I popped into my room first, making sure that nothing was left out that I didn't want my friends to see, and a second later, they walked in, as well. I saw that I had left the fan on in my room, and all the sketches, both mine and my mothers, that were tacked up on the wall were fluttering lightly in the makeshift breeze. My room was neat and tidy, save for a few things here and there on the floor which I had been to lazy to clean up, and the perfectly pristine white walls reflected the light let in from the window, of which the soft blue curtains were drawn. Even when the thin curtains were closed, the sunlight shone in, brightly, spilling over my room and making it appear much less gloomy than it sometimes felt. Selphie and Kairi walked over to my queen sized bed, you could say my parents loved to spoil their only child, and sat down, wrinkling the smoothly made sheets. My bed lacked a comforter.

I sat in the middle of the floor, and Olette perched on the sill of the bay window. Selphie reached over and switched on the stereo by my bed. I didn't have much time to identify the nearly familiar song before Kairi interrupted my thought process.

"Namine," I looked over at her, questioning with my eyes when my voice was absent. "I hope you don't mind me inviting all of us over to your house. We really just wanted to be here to spend a little more time with you to talk about what you told us." I felt my cheeks tint pink and wished vainly for a direction I could look to make sure that none of my friends would see.

"I don't mind," I replied honestly. The only part of the sleep over I wasn't looking forward to was the whole "talk about boys" part, and only because now, they knew who my boy was.

She smiled. "Thanks. So, you guys wanna get this whole sleep over thing rolling?" We laughed at her words, and Selphie pulled an unread magazine from the drawer of my bedside table.

"Oh, Namine, you didn't tell us you had a subscription to Teen Girl." (A.N. Yeah, I know that's just about the stupidest zine name in the WORLD, but give me a break) She flipped absently through the pages, then looked at me, again. "When did you get it?"

"Um," I thought about the question. "On the eighth of every month for about a year, now. Why?" I was vaguely aware of the song changing in the background.

"I've wanted to get this magazine for _forever_!" She whined. "My mom won't let me."

"I don't even like it, really. Or actually," I blinked a few times. "I've never read it. My dad insists that girls my age read magazines, and don't spend all their time 'on pointless doodles, when all my real talents are being abused as I hide behind art'." I quoted the words of the argument my father and I had gone through last month. He didn't find it strange at all that nearly all my mother did was draw.

The look on Kairi's face said she disagreed with my father, but she kept her mouth shut. "Well," Selphie began again. "We should look through it. There's always a bunch of quizzes and stuff in mags, and that's perfect for a sleep over." I nodded, and even thought it was only about one o'clock, we all changed into pajamas, or what could pass for them. I let Kairi wear my _actual _pajamas, since we seemed to be exactly the same size in everything, and Selphie just borrowed some velvet shorts and a tank top. Olette kept her t-shit on, and wore an extra pair of pajama pants I had. I took one of my dad's shirts, and wore it over another pair of shorts of my own.

After a few minutes, the four of us had totally dominated the living room, not that we had much competition. Kairi and I had our legs entangles, laying in opposite directions on the couch, Olette was sitting, quite petite, nestled into my father's over sized armchair, and Selphie was sitting on the coffee table with her legs crossed, holding the latest copy of Teen Girl with the rest of the issues stacked on the table beside her. Already, we were in the middle of the "what aura matches yours" quiz, and we couldn't help but laugh at some of the questions in Selphie's worshiped magazine.

"Okay, fine! We'll pick a different quiz!" Selphie said, trying not to laugh at Olette's statement that "the color of the hair tie you wore when you met your true love really had nothing to do with your aura". She picked up another magazine. "Oo, here's a good one. Who wants to take it?" She eyed me, her gaze full of implications, and I stared at her right back until I finally caved in and agreed to take the test. "Yeah!" She exclaimed excitedly, and we laughed as she flipped through the pages, stopping abruptly and smiling deviously up at me.

"What's it called?" I asked, suddenly, not fully aware of why the words came out of my mouth.

"I am _so _glad you asked." She replied. "The Perfect Guy For You." My jaw dropped, but my protests were silent, as my voice escaped me. "Question one," She read, and I tried again to turn my useless squeaks into words. Words enough to tell her that I didn't want to take this quiz; I already knew what type of boy I liked. "You're on a first date with the guy you've been crushing on practically since you met him. He gives you what?" I rambled incoherent stutters as she read off the answers. "Flowers; my guy knows just what kind I like. Candies; he wanted me to have something as 'sweet' as I am. Or nothing; I don't need anything to tell me how special I am to this boy."

"Uh-I-Selphie, we-I don't-but–" Kairi sat up a little and I looked her way. I could tell by her face that I appeared frantic. She smiled at me, slightly, and I smiled back, relieved that my friend was caring enough to pass on the message that I didn't want to take the quiz.

"Selphie," She began, turning towards her. Selphie cocked her head. "I think Namine..." I closed my eyes, sighing deeply as I awaited her words. "I mean... well, I'm pretty sure she's going with the last one." My eyes shot open.

"Check!" Selphie said, happily, striking a mark on the page with a blue pen.

"Kairi!" She ignored me, laying back down, and smiling contentedly. "Selphie!"

"What? Did you want a different answer?" She asked, seriously. She didn't realize at all my problem with taking the quiz.

"I–" I paused, sighing and shook my head. "No. Go ahead with the quiz." There simply was no winning sometimes, and Olette was too busy reading an article from a different issue to notice my problem and verbalize it. I knew I was too timid.

"Great!" Selphie said, laughing a little. "For a second, I thought you didn't want to take it." I gaped at that, but had no time to elaborate, when Selphie lurched back into the quiz. It was at question six that things got embarrassing for me.

"Okay," Kairi began. She had taken over for Selphie while she got the popcorn from the kitchen. Selphie returned with the bowl, but let Kairi keep the position of, as Selphie called it "Quiz Master". "Question six," I sighed.

"How many questions are there?"

Kairi flipped the page for just a second, checking to see if there were any more questions. "Six. The next page is the answers."

"Okay, let's get this over with." I draped one arm over my closed eyes and waited for her to ask the final question.

"How many boys have you kissed?" My breath caught in my throat. This was something we had never talked about. "One to five, six to ten, or eleven plus?"

"Um..." I pushed against the couch with my forearms, pulling my body up into a sitting position. "I–"

"Wait!" Selphie called suddenly interrupting me. The three of us looked her way, even Olette put her magazine down. "We should all guess!" I flushed red, I'm sure, knowing that there was no way they would get it right, considering my answer wasn't even included in the options... "I think she's an eleven plus!" Selphie exclaimed, happier than she should have been.

"Judging by her face," Kairi laughed, and I covered my reddened face with a pillow. "I would say she's more of a one to five."

"I think so, too." Olette said, quietly.

"Well, Namine," Selphie began again. "Which is it? Who's right?"

"Nobody..."

"Oh. I see," She said slowly. "She's a six to ten. Well then, Namine, your answer is–"

"I'm not a six to ten..."

"Well then... one of us is right, aren't we?" Kairi asked.

"I've never kissed anyone," I admitted shyly, and all of them gaped. Olette was the first to recover.

"That's okay, Namine. You don't need to kiss boys to be... to be..." She struggled to find a word to make me feel better, but her unfinished sentence made me even more embarrassed. "Well, it's okay." She lamely.

"How many boys have _you _kissed?" I asked, regretting it.

Her cheeks tinted pink and she looked away. "You could say... I was a six to ten." I was nearly chewing a hole in my lip.

"Oh..."

"Well," Kairi said, changing the subject. "We'll put you down for a one to five. Then your answer is..." She counted off my answers and flipped the page, smiling as she read over my answer. She looked up at me, grinning evilly. "Skater boy."

"What?" I nearly screamed.

"That's what your answer is!" She defended, laughing when I grabbed the magazine away from her and verified for myself that what she had said was indeed true. Defeated, and alarmed, I handed the magazine back to her with a limp hand. "Okay, here we go. 'You are an innocent person, attracted to sweet boys. You don't have much experience in the dating field, and you don't feel like you have to. An endearing boy is definitely what you need, but he can't be all angel. Your perfect guy is a skater'."

"Oh my God, Namine," Selphie said slowly. "You and Roxas were _so _meant to be. Even the magazine knows it!" I sighed, tired of flushing red for the night.

"Namine, I don't really believe these tests," Olette said, and Selphie scoffed in the background. "But, I do think that you and Roxas should give something a try. You said you liked him, and I can tell he likes you, too. I've known him all my life." She smiled sweetly, feeling like she had helped no doubt, but I shook my head.

"I'm not exactly talking to him," I said. The three looked puzzled at me. I took a deep breath, and presumed to explain my reason to them. They listened carefully, their expressions showing sympathy as I relayed my emotions for them, ending around the time Riku picked us up.

"That is so sad,"

"I'm sorry," Kairi said. "But he said he had a reason, right?" To clarify, rather than looking at me, she looked at Olette, nodding slightly. Olette ran her bottom lip through her teeth, shrugging slightly. She didn't know whether or not it was true.

"I could call Hayner and ask him if he knows anything about it," She suggested. "Roxas tells him everything, and he'll keep it a secret if we ask."

"If _you _ask, you mean." Selphie mumbled, but all of us heard her. I smiled. Hayner's seemingly one sided crush on Olette was obvious to any girl, and perhaps even a few perceptive boys. I had always thought it was sweet of him, but Olette seemed to think otherwise.

"Shut up, Selphie. You're crazy," She denied, pulling out her cell phone. "So do you want me to call him?" I shrugged, then nodded, hoping he knew something about the situation. "Okay, I'll put him on speaker, but don't talk," She warned. We all agreed. She pressed a few buttons on her phone, and held it a small ways away from her face, all of us gathering around it on the second ring. He answered on the third.

"Hello?"

"Hayner, hi. This is Olette." As if he didn't already know.

"I know." I smiled.

"Well, I have a question or two."

"Shoot." She looked at me once more, and I nodded. She commenced asking him about it, hinting very subtly that I wanted to know.

"Yeah, he said he was doing something with Namine, but he was still at home when I called him later. He didn't really want to talk to me, but I kind of made him. He said he just kind of didn't go, and I kind of went off on him."

I felt both good and bad at the same time. Hayner cared enough about me to get angry at his best friend for doing something that could have hurt my feelings. That made me feel good. Although, I liked Hayner very much, I rarely spoke to him. I was never very sure if he liked me, and he sometimes frightened me a little, but I guess I just never got to know him as well as I should have. That made me feel bad.

"What did he say?" Olette asked, and my breath caught.

"He was scared." I pictured Hayner lifting one shoulder in a casual shrug, the way he did when he had no better reason for something he had said or done.

"Why was he scared?" Olette asked again.

"Well, don't tell Namine, oh, hi, Namine, by the way," I froze, and the three of them looked up at me, eyes wide. "And Selphie, and hi Kairi–" Olette flipped the phone closed without hearing the rest of his answer, and all of us were equally embarrassed.

"How did he know we were there?!" Selphie squeaked, and I felt lucky I hadn't eaten much that day.

My voice was weak when I spoke. "Do you think he'll tell Roxas? That we called him?"

"I don't think so, Namine. Don't worry. Hayner's a nice guy," Olette said, reassuringly, placing a hand on my shoulder.

"We should all get to sleep for the night. I think we've had enough of this sleep over for now."

"I agree." We all laid down, silently pretending to sleep, though the tensity was near tangible, so it was obvious we were all still awake. But we laid there faithfully, not breaking the silence, occasionally shifting or sighing softly to enhance the illusion, and not another word was spoken that night.


	6. Chapter 6

Yeah okay, so I don't own any of it. D: Namine, Kairi, Olette, Roxas, Sunset Hill. none of it. it is quite depressing. and again I frown. :( ok, well, sorry it took me so long to update the last chapter, my internet wasn't working.

Chapter 6:

"Bye. Thanks for coming. It was um... a lot of fun." I smiled as each of my friends waved me off, all piling into the cars of their parents. I watched them all leave, and just as I was turning back to the door, I heard the familiar sound of wheels on the concrete. I tried not to pay attention to the sound, and began to turn the knob, but then, it just stopped. My smile slipped away.

"Namine," He said. "Can we talk?"

I turned slowly around to face him, my grip increasing potentially when I saw the sorrowful look in his eyes. I inhaled deeply, preparing to turn him down, but all I could say was "Always." and smile just a little bit.

His skateboard was behind his back, and he held it tightly with both hands, looking uneasy as he stepped up to my porch. His eyes went from my hand to my face; I hadn't released the doorknob. Against my will, my fingers uncurled and my hand fell to my side, I fell into the nearest chair, sitting loosely, without bothering to hide my discomfort.

He took a deep breath, and began suddenly, lacking any comforting starter words. "Namine, I didn't have any real reason to break my promise to you, and I feel really bad about it, but" He squeezed the bottom of his shirt tightly in his fists. He hadn't yet sat down. "I'll do it again, so it's better you just don't hang out with me anymore, at least not alone." I waited for him to say something more, to elaborate his decision, or laugh and say that he was kidding, but instead, he turned and began to leave.

"No, Roxas, wait," I said, involuntarily, and extended my arm, pointlessly. He wavered a bit, and turned back. I lowered my hand, embarrassed. "What's this about all of a sudden?" His cheeks tinted pink.

"I–"

"I mean," I stood up, and he took a small step back. "Doesn't that seem a little overboard?" He shook his head, but I kept on. "You blew me off to hang out for _one day_, it isn't the end of the world, you know? It's not like it _meant _anything." I waved the air with one hand, smiling despite myself. After all, I was being partially honest. Regardless of what Hayner had said on the phone last night, our plans really had meant nothing. To Roxas. I was willing to put my feelings aside for him. He looked like I had slapped him and he didn't speak right away.

"Yeah. You're right. Sorry, I was being... overly dramatic." I smiled at him, and it was obvious his return was forced.

"So, you're reason. What was it? You didn't have time to tell me when Riku picked us up."

"Can I, well I mean, instead of _telling _you, can I make it up to you?" I drew back, slightly.

"What do you mean?" I asked, cautiously.

"Meet me somewhere tonight." I eyed him suspiciously. I opened my mouth to speak, but he held up a silencing finger. "And I'll actually be there." Silently, I willed him not to promise, and it seemed he got the message. He turned and left with no more details about anything. Confused, I went back into my house, where a few minutes later I would receive a text from a certain blonde haired boy. And I don't mean Hayner.

**sunset hill.** **midnight.**

Sunset Hill. I reread the name again and again. Everyone knew that Sunset Hill was just a great place to hang out. During the day. At night, however, it was completely different. I had heard that you couldn't go with someone to Sunset Hill at night without it turning into something more. It was said that true love began there. I rushed upstairs, threw my bedroom door open, and frantically began... to raid my closet.

When the contents of my closet were scattered mercilessly on my floor, I settled for a nothing special light blue, halter top dress. I looked at myself, front and back in the mirror, constantly making minor adjustments for when I would change back into the dress later tonight. I finally perfected my image, and frowned at it. Why was I trying to impress him after what he did to me?

I groaned and stepped out the dress, slipping back into the more casual clothes I wore today, and slumped downstairs. It was still before noon. My dad was at the table, but he wasn't reading the newspaper like usual. He looked irritated.

"Hi, daddy," I began, swiftly kissing him, like always. "Where's mom?"

He sourly sipped at his coffee. "In the living room."

"I see," I managed to sound uninterested enough as I poured myself a glass of orange juice. "Anything special in the news today?"

"Actually yes," He picked up the untouched newspaper from the table and flipped a few pages into it. "The headline would be something like," He pretended he was still looking for the article. "Daughter has secret meetings with boy," He grumbled. I nearly spit my juice out as I laughed. My father looked back at me sourly, his thin eyes even thinner as he gave me a death glare over his shoulder. He was so silly when he tried to be mad, and it was all the more comical that he didn't realize.

I wiped my smiling lips with a napkin that I promptly threw away, and walked back over to the table. I took the seat across from my father. "Daddy," I said. "Tell me about this scandal in the news." I could see him pressing his lips into a thin line to suppress the smile that he fought back.

"Well, it was a lovely family. A beautiful mother, and a brilliant, handsome father," My smile widened with humor. "The daughter was just as sweet as any other, though nobody suspected her to be a deviant trouble maker."

"Oh, do continue," I urged jokingly, resting my chin on the fist made by my right hand.

"As well I should. You see, Namine, this daughter told her father, _very _specifically, I might add, that she would _not _be alone with a certain boy, who was only a friend of a friend," I raised my eyebrows. "And that said 'friend of a friend'," He quoted with his fingers. "Was doing no more than teaching her to skateboard. Now, the father, innocently passing by an open window, saw his daughter with a boy, whom he had never seen, let alone met. As he continued on his way, seeing only from peripheral vision, and _not _listening in, he found that the two were speaking so loudly, he could pick up small pieces of conversing, though he never stopped." I fought to contain the hysterical laughter that built inside my chest as my father lied through his teeth about his actions. "He overheard and pieced together that the two were clandestinely rendezvousing that night. He, being the kind man he was, tried instead to speak to his daughter, rather than foil her covert operations, however, his daughter made no move in point to try and explain her motivations to her father, or–"

I couldn't take it anymore, and I suddenly burst out laughing. He eyed me, disgruntled, and I managed to muffle my crack up to a mere giggle fit. When I finally had the control to speak, I did. "Daddy, please, you make this girl sound like a spy, or something. Maybe, she had motivations that she was uncomfortable discussing with her father, and maybe, she hadn't told him that she wouldn't be alone with the boy, but rather, insisted that she would not _that day _and that she was responsible enough to take that action. And maybe, her father did not _ask _for explanation or reason of her actions, nor did he ask what her plans for the evening were. And perhaps she would have told her father what her intentions had been, had he not 'tried to speak with her'. And maybe, daddy, this girl should be very, _very _angry that her father eavesdropped on her conversation."

"Ah!" He nearly shouted, and I jumped a little in my seat. "You did not listen to the story! He was _not _eavesdropping, he was passing by!"

"Daddy, please! You are the nosiest person around! Why else would you be the editor of a newspaper? And my conversations are none of your business. If I wanted you to know about them, I would have _told _you, but you overreact to every little thing I do, so sometimes, I just _have _to keep secrets from you, and–"

"Am I to believe, through what you have just told me, that you are in a situation quite similar to the girl in the paper?" I gawked at my father for just a moment.

"Then am _I _to believe that you were not insinuating something by the story you told me?" I asked in just the same tone.

He narrowed his eyes to tiny slits, and we stared at each other, silently for a moment, until we both began to laugh, and finally re-composed ourselves. He turned so he sat sideways in his seat, and motioned for me to come over, opening his arms. I stood and walked around the table, sitting on his lap, and he hugged me. I hugged him back. He felt warm, and he smelt like a mix of his black coffee and some other, minty scent. He inhaled softly and blew out his breath over my hair.

"Oh, my Namine. I have a hard time accepting you growing up, so I pretend you don't have to. This sudden interest in boys is not taking so well to me."

"Um, daddy?" I said, in a questioning tone. He grunted softly to show that I had his attention. "It's... not exactly sudden." He tensed for a moment, but with another deep breath, he was relaxed again.

"So tell me, is it that Roxas boy?" He sounded defeated, like it really was too much for him.

"Yes." I answered truthfully, pressing my face into his shirt, a if to hide my embarrassment. Like I had said, it was uncomfortable talking to my father about it.

"And did your mother know?"

"Yes."

"Does he know?"

"I... I'm not sure."

"Well, this boy is your friend, correct?" he began again, after a short pause.

"Yes. He and a few other boys hang out with me, Kairi, Selphie, and Olette."

"How many other boys?"

I counted in my head. "Six other boys."

He took in a sharp breath. "Six. And your mother knows them all." It wasn't a question, so I didn't respond. "Because I overreact to every little thing you do," He repeated my words, and in his voice, they sounded much harsher than I had meant them.

"Would you like to meet them, daddy?" I asked on a whim, trying to comfort him. I didn't know if it would be too much for him to handle, or perhaps too much for my friends, but he smiled and agreed, and I stood up, kissing him once more, and turned to leave. "Daddy," I said, turning back for just a second. He looked up at me from the table. "Covert operations?" I said, gigging. He smiled, and shooed me away. I laughed, and ran up the stairs without finishing my juice or getting the distraction I had originally aimed for by coming down.

I flopped down on my bed, sighing loudly, and just laid there. The mattress was unbelievably comfortable after two nights of no sleep, and I slowly found myself drifting into unconsciousness, lighter and lighter, until I fell away completely.

"Mn..." I groaned lightly as I sat up in my bed, only to find that it was extremely dark outside. I sighed, and looked over at my clock.

12:08

I glanced over at the small red numbers one more time, and closed my eyes again falling back to the bed. In a matter of seconds, however, they flew back open, and I sat up so quickly, that I got a rush headache. "Ugh..." I moaned pressing my fingers hard into my temples. The second I recovered, I stood up, and rushed the short distance to my closet, where I undressed as quickly as I could, and stepped into the dress I had picked out earlier that day. Or yesterday, I suppose.

As quickly, and silently as I could, I grabbed my keys and ran down the stairs, opening the door slowly, and as I was closing it, "It's a little cold. Do you want your jacket?" My mother's voice asked softly from the kitchen. Crap!! I thought. I can't believe that I had forgotten the reason my mother always woke up so late, was because of how late she stayed up.

"Um... mom, listen,"

"If you do, it's in the closet. Make sure you lock the door on the way out." I couldn't believe my ears, but I didn't have to. I nodded, a pointless motion, and shut the door behind me, fumbling with my key as I rushed to lock the door. I turned, ready to run the two blocks that separated my house from Sunset Hill, when I realized.

It was pitch black. It was freezing cold. It was dead silent. My breath stuck in my throat as I stumbled a few steps forward. I wasn't sure I could make it. I took out my cell phone as a distraction, and watched the little light of the screen steadily as I walked slowly down the street. I kept imagining noises that I was too afraid to look up and focus on. Eventually, I noted on my cell phone that it was twelve nineteen, I made it to Sunset Hill. I looked up, expecting to see Roxas, when my eyes were met with nothing more than the blackness. I relayed our conversation in my mind.

"_Meet me somewhere tonight, and I'll actually be there."_

I blew out a puff of air as I sat quickly and flipped my phone closed. Twelve nineteen. Did he really not show up again, or had I just come too late?

"Namine," I started at the sound, and turned quickly. In the darkness, I could hardly make out his figure, but as he came closer, I knew it was him, not only by his voice. He crouched low beside me. "I was getting ready to leave. I thought you weren't coming."

"I'm sorry," I said, nervously. All the things I had heard about Sunset Hill were playing in the back of my mind, but were drowned out by internal screams at the thought of being so close to Roxas, and still I could hardly see him. Maybe, I thought with relief, that means he couldn't see me.

"You look a little red, are you feeling okay?" He pressed a soft hand to my forehead, and I froze on impact. "Namine?" He said after a while, removing his hand, and waving it in front of my face. "You there?"

"S-Sorry!" He laughed a little, and sat, closer to me than he had ever been.

"So Namine," My heart gave a squeeze as I looked over at him, finding that he was smiling casually over at me, leaning in just slightly. "You heard the legends about this place?"

---

will Roxas _ever _reveal his reason for standing Namine up?? what will happen on sunset hill?? are the rumors true?!?! its all so mysterious!!! yeah, okay, so again, another uneventful chapter. But the next one will be better, i promise!! after all, its namine, roxas, a romantic-legend bearing hill, and midnight. oooo:o) hope you enjoyed the chapter!!


	7. Chapter 7

woo! Chapter seven is up!! FINALLY! we find out what happens on sunset hill!! or do we?? no, im kidding, we do. so yes, if you're reading this, then thank you for sticking with the story long enough to make it to this chapter! many thank yous!

blech. nothing is mine. blech. NO WAIT! I LIED!!!! the legends used in this chapter are totally, completely, and 100 MY PROPERT-EH!!!!!

Thanks! Enjoy!!

Chapter 7:

"_So Namine," My heart gave a squeeze as I looked over at him, finding that he was smiling casually over at me, leaning in just slightly. "You heard the legends about this place?"_

"I... yes. I have." He smiled.

"Good, that saves some time." I furrowed my brows, confused by his words, but he acted as if he had never said anything, connecting his arms behind his head and laying back on the grass. I looked down at him, curiously. Maybe I had heard different rumors than him?

"What do you mean... saves time?" I asked, quietly, twisting around and laying on my stomach, folding my arms carefully beneath my chin. In the process, I was careful to scoot just a little farther away from him.

"Well, you know what supposedly happens, right?"

"Yes," I elongated the word, drawing it out to show my confusion.

"Well then, you should know why I asked you to come here." I couldn't believe how badly I responded. I actually, literally, gasped. Loudly.

"Roxas, I think I've heard different legends than you," I said quickly, my voice shaky from nervousness. I sat up instantly.

He still didn't look surprised and he sat up, to match me. "Namine, I don't think there's all that many legends about this place. What have you heard?"

"That um... Well it's... something about..." He cracked a smile. "It's weird to say, okay?!" I shouted, embarrassed.

"I think I know what you heard." My jaw dropped.

"Excuse me? I mean... you... you do?" He laughed a little and I noticed that despite the dark, I could still tell how impeccably light his eyes were.

"Namine, you heard the rumor about love, huh?" I couldn't find my voice to answer him, so I just nodded, feeling the familiar warming sensation in my cheeks. "Yeah, well that's pretty much the most common one," He said casually and I gaped stupidly.

"But then... if you..." My breath increased and he smiled again, touching my arm lightly, and telling me to calm down. His enchanting laugh filled the air, yet again.

"Relax, Namine. I didn't bring you here to fall in love with me. Besides, that's only supposed to happen if you kiss." I found that deep down, I was slightly more disappointed than relieved. He turned his eyes skyward, and I saw reflected in them many constellations. It was beautiful. "They say that if you're with someone you really care about, the stars will dance for you. It sounds stupid, but it's something I've always wanted to see." My expression softened as I listened to his words. "I figured," He turned back to me, grinning that amazing smile of his. "Who better to come with than you?"

"So, then, Roxas, is that the only reason you brought me here?" I tried to hide the small pang of pain in my voice. He didn't seem to pick it up, because he went no easier on my feelings.

"Of course not," I inhaled deeply. I'm not sure what I expected, but it certainly wasn't what I got. "I'm making it up to you, remember?" My breath let out in a whoosh, that I seemed to be the only one to hear. I folded my hands tightly in my lap and looked up into the sky. I saw no dancing stars.

But I did see one fall. My eyes widened and I stood, shakily, but fast, clenching my hands to my chest and closing my eyes. I wished with all my heart, and didn't even realize that I was leaning forward. By the time my wish was complete, I realized I was falling, and I turned slightly in an attempt to right myself, but I only ended up falling in a different direction. I only ended up falling into Roxas.

He was still sitting, I observed, and his legs absorbed some of the blow my head would have taken, though it still hurt pretty badly when the impact came. He let out a sharp breath, so I guess I hurt him, too. I felt horrible. Not only did this make me the biggest idiot in the world, I had just physically hurt Roxas. Scene relay, love-struck loser jumps up to wish, childishly on a shooting star, while the boy sits behind her, probably refraining from hysterical laughter, then, she falls, turns, trying to save herself, and then, falls into the boy, hurting _both _of them.

Again heat rose to my cheeks, but it didn't feel refreshing in the slightest, this time. He opened his eyes, and looked down at me. I couldn't read the expression on his face. "Roxas! I'm so sorry! I–"

"Are you okay?" He asked, calmly.

"What? I'm fine, but–"

He sighed and let his head fall back. "Crap. Don't do that."

"Huh? Don't do what?"

"Scare me like that. You turned all red and I thought you hurt yourself." I didn't know quite how to respond, but he looked down at me, his blue eyes piercing, and I wouldn't have been able to say anything, anyway. "Well, then," He smiled a little, and looked back up at the sky. "I guess that was supposed to be our dancing star, huh?" I started to sit up, but he looked down at me, suddenly. "Wait," I paused, and my head fell back to his lap. "You like me, don't you?" I could swear I stopped breathing, but, again, he acted like nothing had happened, like he hadn't just asked that. "Because I like you, and it kinda seems like you feel the same way." And my heart beat again, and again, and I knew that I must be dreaming, because I was alive, and this couldn't be heaven. "Plus, everyone has kind of been dropping hints that they think we should go out or something." He smiled down at me, once more, and I was at a complete thinking block. Nothing processed correctly. "So, Namine, do you like me?"

I couldn't have answered him even if I had wanted to, because I couldn't move my lips. Because they were beneath his. And I swear, just past his face, I saw the whole sky dancing.

xxx

I groaned lightly, and lifted my head. From my pillow. I looked over at the clock, quickly.

12:08

I blinked a few times, expecting something else from my clock, but the little red numbers just flashed once, changing time by one minute. "Crap," I whined, aloud. "It _was _just a dream! Ugh!" I pushed my legs over the side of the bed, ready to change into the dress, when I caught a glance of my outfit. I was startled, and I nearly snapped my neck turning so quickly to the window. Where bright light was pouring through. "Oh... my..."

My mother responded to my scream with an uninterested sounding "Did you fall out of bed, honey? It's not like you to sleep in so late." I panted heavily as I went to the mirror, validating that I still wore the blue dress I had worn in my dream, and noting what I could not see before. A small red line on the back of my neck where I had fallen to Roxas, and a slightly larger green smear on the side of my dress, where the grass had stained it while Roxas and I... kissed. I nearly chewed a hole in my lip. I quickly changed out of my dress and slipped into the shower, not waiting for the freezing water to warm before I stepped in.

The small droplets of cold water slowly turned warmer and warmer, until every drop burned my skin. But I didn't turn the water down. My breathing slowed, eventually, and I wondered what would happen. What _had _happened. I remembered kissing Roxas, or rather, him kissing me, the warmth of his lips as they pressed down onto mine, and the stars twinkling wildly just past his crystalline blue eyes... I shook my head clear of thoughts, pressing my eyes shut tight. And then, nothing. Nothing after he kissed me. Why didn't I remember? There had to be _some _explanation of why I could call nothing forth from my memory. Something... There had to be.

One particular drop scorched low on my back and I winced with pain, but then vaguely remembered Roxas's hand there. I gasped lightly. "_What_?" I hissed, to nobody. "_What _was his hand _doing _there?" I tried to remember something about what had happened after the kiss, but only one thing found its way to the surface of my memory.

"_Besides, that's only supposed to happen if you kiss."_

I shut the water off immediately, eyes wide. I reached out of the shower with one hand, leaving traces of water as I searched the white wall, blindly with one hand. I finally found my towel, and brought it into the shower, wrapping myself up in it, as I pushed the wet tendrils of hair from my eyes.

"Namine!" The voice called me back to earth. It was my dad.

"Yeah?" I called back down, stepping out of the shower, and wringing my hair out.

"A few of your friends are here to see you," He shouted, again. I poked my head out of the bathroom that was connected on one side to my room, and shouted that I would be down just as soon as I was dressed. I hurriedly changed into a pair of jeans and the first shirt I saw, which unfortunately was an old pink one with long sleeves and a big yellow flower on the front. I knew who it would be, and I knew that Kairi wouldn't mind the cheesy outfit, or me changing once she saw it. The shirt was loose on me, yet another reminder of why it was never worn, and I rushed down the stairs, not bothering to brush my hair.

I grabbed the bannister at the bottom, using my momentum to swing slightly in the direction of the kitchen. My wet hair slapped my face with the sharp turn, and I nearly fell over, seeing Roxas standing awkwardly beside the couch, where my father rested, casually. Hearing the small squeak that escaped my lips, both my father and Roxas turned to see me, and I turned away as fast as I could, running back to that from whence I had come.

I looked in the mirror when I was upstairs, assessing the damage, and my cheeks were red, not only from the steam in the shower. I found another shirt, short sleeved and a light yellow, and paired it with a blue plaid skirt. I knew I looked stupid when I pulled a white, slightly too big, sweatshirt over my head, but I didn't care. It would beat my last entrance. I sighed and pulled my hair into a loose ponytail the hung over the side of my shoulder, leaving a small wet area where it fell. I took several deep breaths, and resumed walking back into the kitchen, and looking to the couch in the family room, where the two still hadn't noticed me come back in.

"Oh, Nami, honey, you're up. Well, this a new look for you," My mother said, smiling, coming at me from behind. I turned quickly, but not so quickly that I didn't notice Roxas turn toward the direction of her voice. "It's cute." I smiled, slightly, and watched her intently, hoping she would get the message and help me to escape the situation. She didn't. "Oh, Roxas, it's nice to see you. I hadn't noticed you standing there."

"Thanks. It's nice to see you, too."

"Well," My mother looked back at me, and I very subtly shook my head no. Again, she failed to receive my pleas. "I would suppose you came to see Namine, not me." I turned to see him smile and nod, and my mother told us to go up to my room so that we wouldn't be distracted by the television as my father watched it. I sighed deeply as we headed up the stairs.

"You um... have a nice home." He said, when we reached the second story, and I pictured my room, with all my clothes scattered on the floor.

"Thanks," I said, turning to face him. "We can talk in the game room, instead of my room, because there's a couch," I improvised, thinking well of myself. He agreed, not to be difficult, of course, and I suddenly remembered what my father had said. "Wait," He waited. "My daddy said that there were a _few _friends here. Did you come alone?"

"Er, no. Hayner actually came with, but he left instead of coming in. You know, so we could talk."

"Oh, how... considerate of him." I wished that Hayner had stayed, at least to bring up a different subject than that which was eminent if Roxas and I were alone. I wished for Kairi, Olette, Selphie, anybody to be there with us, and temporarily hated my mother for suggesting we leave them. Roxas had his hands in his pockets, and rocked back onto his heels, then to his toes, and continued the motion.

"So," He began, awkwardly. "Where's the game room, again?"

"Oh! Right, sorry." He followed me into a large room at the end of the hall, and we sat at opposite sides of the couch, trying to be as far from one another as possible. It was silent for a long while before he spoke.

"So, Namine, about last night..."

---

So! what do you think?? like it so far?? FINALLY SOME KISSING!!!! glad they got all of THAT out of their systems :) i already have about half of the next chapter written, but im more than willing to take suggestions!! anything (or any_body_) you'd like to see more of? let me know and ill try my best to make it happen! im also INCREDIBLY boooored with my life right now, but i can't come up with any ideas for one shots or drabbles – which I love, so if you have any extras just laying around... thanks again for reading!!


	8. Chapter 8

ohmigawd, im soooooooo sorry that it took me so long to update! first, I was grounded, then I was staying at my grandmother's house for three days, and then when I came back, my internet was down and I couldn't post! I feel horrible!!! sob I truly am heinous. thank you for waiting. 3

nothing is mine. disclaimers now, tears later

Chapter 8:

_He followed me into a large room at the end of the hall, and we sat at opposite sides of the couch, trying to be as far from one another as possible. It was silent for a long while before he spoke._

"_So, Namine, about last night..."_

I took in a slow breath, keeping myself calm before I even began to panic, but he didn't continue. "Roxas?" I asked. He sucked in a sharp breath.

"Sorry, I kinda stopped breathing." I looked at him questioningly for a second, but my lips formed a small smile. "Okay, so um... yeah. Where was I?"

I smiled wider. He hadn't said all that much. "About last night," I reminded him, losing the reason for the upward curve in my lips.

"Oh, right. That's right. Last night." He was nervous, I could tell, and it comforted me to know that that appeared to be normal in our situation. I stopped trying to seem so calm. "Did you... want to know anything about it?"

"Well– wait. What do you mean?" I asked, dumbly. What exactly did he want me to say?

"I don't really know where to start. I was thinking it might just be easier if you asked about... whatever. Or what you wanted to know."

"Oh. I see. Well," I started, quickly, and he seemed surprised. "What exactly happened last night?" His cheeks tinted pink. I read the look on his face to mean he was confused, and partly chagrined, and I jumped back into my rambling. "Because I'm sure that not everything I um... remember really happened. It was all confusing, and I can't remember like, half the night, and then even before that, I'm sure I must have fallen asleep, because like, it was way too perfect to have actually happened and," He reddened a little bit more. "I'm not sure if I maybe imagined everything because I have a hard time rationalizing the events in my head, so–"

"N-Namine," I paused, and looked at him. I sometimes babbled endlessly when I was nervous. Or lying. "Maybe I should just give you a brief about what happened last night. Really short."

"O-okay," I agreed, shyly.

"We met at Sunset Hill, I told you why I wanted to come, you saw a shooting star, you fell." I nodded and looked at him expectantly, as if something was missing. It was quiet. Finally, I accepted that I had dreamt up part of it, and opened my mouth to speak, but I was cut off before I began. "I told you I liked you, and I kissed you."

"Oh," I swallowed. "Right. But Roxas," He didn't look at me, but focused intently on his hands, tightly gripping the fabric of his pants. "I don't remember anything after that, except your... hand..." I didn't continue any farther, and he seemed to catch my drift. He jumped up, his whole face having reddened, and turned away from me, breathing heavily.

"I swear to God, Namine, you passed you, and I carried you home," He said sternly. I stood up, too.

"Okay, I believe you," I replied, quietly, and touched his shoulder. He seemed to relax under my touch, and turned back to me, his head down so I still couldn't see his eyes. "But Roxas," I smiled, and attempted to lighten the intensely heavy mood that fell mercilessly upon us. "You didn't have to be so valiant, I mean, you could have just dragged me. I wouldn't have minded."

His lips, the only visible part of his face twitched, and formed an awkward smile, and I bent down a little, to see his face. I couldn't handle only the sight of his lips. Not only was it strange after what had... happened, but I needed his eyes.

"I'm not so great. It was a piggy back ride," He said, raising his head to more easily meet my eye. I smiled and wrapped my arms around his neck, raising onto my tippy-toes until he leaned down slightly and connected his arms around my waist.

"What now?" I asked quietly. I could feel the rise and fall of his chest, and very faintly, his heart beating beneath it. "Do we pretend it never happened, or do we tell the others, or... what now?"

"Now," He replied in the same manner. "It's up to you." I loosened my grip around his neck and moved to arms length, my arms still perched as his shoulders. He kept his arms fastened low at my waist, and I smiled up at him.

"Up to me?" I asked, deviously, and he grinned right back.

"Everything. Namine, I meant what I said last night. I really do like you, but I didn't really give you a chance to answer me, so now, it's up to you. Whatever you want is fine with me."

"Well, Roxas," I said, leveling my eyes with the logo on his shirt. "I like you, too." He said nothing. "What does that make us?"

"Friends with benefits?" He joked, and I smiled, pushing away from him.

"Ew!"

"You got any better ideas?" He asked, smiling and pulled me closer again.

"I have a few," A gruff voice said from behind us. Immediately, I moved my hands, which had since drifted from Roxas's shoulders to his chest, back to my sides.

"D-daddy!" I turned, or did what I could manage, ax Roxas's arms were still fastened around my waist. Roxas didn't seem to find it awkward at all.

"Am I interrupting something?" My father asked. I could tell by the strained look on his face that he was trying to keep his throbbing forehead vein from popping. I pressed my palms tightly together and raised my hands to my lips. I sucked in a deep breath.

"Daddy, I–"

"You aren't interrupting," Roxas said politely. My back was pressed tightly to his chest as he was still holding me in his arms, which made it all the more difficult to be coherent, and I felt him touch his lips gently to my hair.

"I'm so glad," My father ground out. I closed my eyes.

"Dad," I began, but once again I was cut off.

"Namine, please. I'd like to speak to your friend for a while."

Roxas let go of me and graciously accepted. "Daddy, Roxas isn't a friend." Both of them looked at me in confusion.

"Then what is he?"

I looked over at Roxas, his bright eyes patient as he awaited my answer. I held my breath for a long moment. "He's more."

"What are you saying? That he's your boyfriend?" The words sounded so sweet in the air, despite having come from my father.

I opened my mouth, scared to look at Roxas until I answered. "That... is exactly what I'm saying."

I turned in a huff to leave them alone, something I regretted even as I did it. I caught Roxas's eye as I passed and he was smiling radiantly at me. My insides all of melted, but it was an amazing feeling. I dared not turn my eyes to my father, who was still in major denial by the sounds of his breathing. As I was walking down the stairs, I paused. Where I stood, they couldn't see me. What was the harm in a _little __tiny_ bit?

I sat on the step I had paused on, careful to be silent as I did so. I could just picture my father, circling like a vulture with his hands in his pockets as Roxas stood, still smiling. "Roxas," He sounded abnormally calm, now that his innocent, virgin-eared daughter was no longer in the room. "I'm not going to accept you dating my daughter, but I won't oppose her decision." That surprised me. He might not like to admit the way I felt about Roxas, but he was willing to be an adult about it. I smiled to myself. "I only have one question for you."

"Sir," How cute! He actually called my daddy 'sir'! "As long as I have your blessing and your wife's to be with Namine," Be with me. To my great embarrassment, despite the fact that nobody else would ever know I did it, I sighed dreamily. "You can ask me as many questions as you want." And how sweet was he? My boyfriend (more sighing) was absolutely perfect.

"Do you really care about my baby girl?" Baby girl, my daddy was so protective. But I smiled, nonetheless.

It seemed like an eternity -a painful, head banging eternity- before Roxas answered. The silence bit at me.

When finally he spoke, his angel's voice said, "So much more than I can tell you."

---

WOO!

they are official!

and again, im sorry it took so long to update.

I feel absolutely hideous. D:


	9. Chapter 9

Woo! What happens now that our two little lovebirds are an official couple?? Where will things take them now??? Perhaps to a messy little kitchen and a big ol' sloppy kiss!!!! literally :) [OH! Before the long list down there, once you get bored of my stories, or if you're looking for something AMAZING to read, I would seriously suggest Riku's Rain, by samuraistar. In all complete honesty, I was a little weary at first, but it is GREAT. Good plot and amazingly written, you HAVE to check it out. Thanks!!

anywho, manyMANY_many_ thank you's are in order. :)

thank you to:

Renorin and Aerion for your review. Loved every part of it. :) (btw, I read your profile and it's awesome how you choose to write the stories :P) yeah, I know I should proof before I submit, thanks for reminding me, though im too lazy to do it anyway. :)

Doggone2Dog for all your luverly cookies!! They are finger-licking good!! Yumyumyum!

Kai lun an, roxas-kh, samuraistar, Ariana Kuul, and haru-teri22 for ALL of your lovely, amazing, and awesome reviews all the time, because you are ALL lovely, amazing, and awesome. :) you faithfully review (thankyouthankyouthankyou) and it really instills in me what little confidence I have for my stories.

Thank you again, and everybody else, even when you just read the story, because you always end up making my days. Thank you! LOVELOVE!!!!

And now, FINALLY!!!! on with the story. :)

Obviously I own nothing.

Chapter 9:

"_Do you really care about my baby girl?" Baby girl, my daddy was so protective. But I smiled, nonetheless._

_It seemed like an eternity -a painful, head banging eternity- before Roxas answered. The silence bit at me._

_When finally he spoke, his angel's voice said, "So much more than I can tell you."_

A small gasp escaped my lips, and my father, who was halfway into his response paused. I covered my mouth, eyes wide. I heard my father walking toward the staircase, but I was frozen. I couldn't move. Every step seemed slow, the moments between them becoming eons of fear and impatience. Finally, there was a hand on my shoulder. I nearly jumped.

"Namine, go speak to your mother." My face went red at the embarrassment of being caught eavesdropping.

I nodded quickly, hands still clamped over my mouth, stood and flew down the stairs and into the kitchen, where my mother had a bazillion different bowls filled. "Nami?" My mom looked at me, puzzled as I stood, hunched over the table nearing hyperventilation. "Are you alright?" I wanted to scream 'Do I look alright?' but my mother cut in, again. "You look mortified, baby. Tell me what happened." I shook my head. She would hear _some _version from my dad later, what was the point of jumping into it now?

"No," I breathed. "No."

"Well then," She started again, always careful not to pry. "Make yourself useful and start cracking eggs into that bowl." I nodded, and walked over to the counter, still replaying the words in my mind, and not bothering to ask what the eggs were for, which, in the case of my mother, I should have done.

I picked up an egg. _How could he like me that much?_ I hit the egg against the side of the bowl and gently pulled it apart until gooey insides fell out of the shell. _He never hinted at it, or said anything, did he?_ I began with another egg. _If he really did like me so much_-oops, shell. I picked it out and threw it in the sink- _then why didn't he ever ask me out?_ _He said something about the first move... what... what was it again?_ We were running out of eggs and I absently wondered how many I was supposed to be cracking. _Kiss! That was it, the kiss. He kissed me._

"Hm? Who kissed you, dear?" I dropped the last egg into the bowl. It cracked, but didn't beak as the whites and yolks of all the other eggs softened its fall. I peered down at it, mouth agape, as it floated around it the not-quite-liquid. I felt literally sick.

"What are you talking about?" I asked, closing my eyes.

"You were just cracking eggs over there and then you blurted out that somebody kissed you. Who, again?"

"I said that... _out loud_?" I was appalled at myself. What else could possibly go wrong today?

"Namine, Sarah," We both turned to my father, who looked dead, and yet somehow angry at the same time, with one arm slung around Roxas's shoulder. "Roxas is staying for dinner." I nodded slowly, then turned back to the counter and let my jaw drop. I was ready to wake up at any time, _any _time from this horrible, horrible nightmare.

But I didn't. Instead, I heard footsteps leading out of the kitchen. I put my hands on the counter and let my head drop, knowing that Roxas and my father had left the kitchen while I assisted my mother in whatever God-awful dish she tried tonight. I jumped slightly when a hand reached out a plucked the cracked egg from the bowl, spinning so that my back was against the counter, and my hands gripped it tightly, one at each of my sides. Roxas looked at me like I was crazy. Why was I being so jumpy? What was I so scared of? I honestly couldn't remember when I looked at him, his gentle eyes mocking as he strained not to laugh.

He pulled apart the already cracked egg and I heard the insides drop into the bowl with a small _plop_.

He stared straight at me as he spoke. "Sarah,"

My mother responded with an uninterested sounding "Mm?"

Roxas moved closer to me. I felt my face heat up as he placed his hands on mine, leaning in to do who knows what. "What exactly are we making?"

"I'm not sure. I was kind of planning on winging it."

"Hm." All the time he was moving slowly closer to me, never breaking eye contact. He smiled a little and I'm sure I almost swooned. One of his hands moved off of mine, reaching back so that I couldn't see what he was doing. He moved in... in... and then

Moved away, whisk in hand and began on the eggs. I was dumbstruck, left practically gasping for air while he just whisked his pretty little eggs, chuckling darkly to himself. I let out a sharp breath, pushing his arm as I passed so that some of the bowls contents were splashed over onto the counter. "Ah!" He breathed, looking at me with easy annoyance. I grinned at him. That's what he gets if he wants to–

"Roxas!" I choked out when he grabbed my hand and smeared it in the yellowy goo on the counter. "Gross!" I pulled my hand up quickly moving away, and a bit of the egg was splattered onto his shirt. He looked down at it in shock for just a second before sticking his hand in a bag of flour I hadn't even noticed was there. And flinging powder across my face.

He was in a laughing fit, too distracted to notice me, stocking over to him with a spoon full of chocolate pudding, which I used to smear on his face, and then onto his hair. Immediately, his laughter ceased and he began to chase me around the kitchen, dirtying me with whatever he could find, as I did the same to him. Eventually, he caught me by the wrist. Nearly throwing me off-balance, he pulled me to him and locked his arms around my waist.

Laughing, I stared up into his eyes, ignoring the serious mess that was his face. He smiled and pressed his lips to mine, moving one of his hands to run through my disgusting hair. I pressed my lips more forcefully to his, lost in the passion of the moment when– SPLAT! A big chocolatey mess ran from the top of my hair down my face just as Roxas pulled away, smiling evilly.

My lips separated as I stepped back, hunching my shoulders and tucking my chin to my chest, watching the brown goop cascade down to the floor, next to the bowl Roxas had dropped after dumping its contents. On my head. "You," I growled.

"Will never cook in my house again," My mother finished, humorously, from behind me. Gasping, I turned to face her. She didn't look angry at all with her hands fisted on her hips and a giant grin playing out across her face. "Roxas, I understand you not wanting to eat a person's cooking, but to make such a fuss about it." Roxas flushed a bright shade of pink and stammered apology to my mother, who just waved it off. "Not a problem, love, not a problem. Though, I'm fairly certain that my husband will disagree."

It would have been wise to just let my eyes roll into the back of my head and die, understanding the situation I was in. My boyfriend, who wasn't even my boyfriend for as many as a few minutes, and I were in my kitchen, in front of my mother, totally oblivious to her existence, making a horrendous mess, kissing (which by the way he is great at), and then we would be judged by my father. My strict, overly-protective, neat freak father. Things weren't looking up.

My mother however, my totally awesome, funny, and understanding mother, didn't seem concerned. "Go ahead and hose off in front of the house. Roxas, I'll find some way to have some dry clothes for you when you come back in." We, both embarrassed, agreed, and rushed outside, sneaking past the family room where my father sat reading a book.

Once outside, we assessed the damage on each other, and both burst into laughter. I turned on the hose at the side of the house and pulled it around to the front. When I came back, Roxas was standing at the curb, talking to Hayner. He looked back at me, cracked a smile, and waved.

"Hey, Namine," I smiled back.

"Hi, Hayner."

"Did I miss anything?" He asked. I laughed a little.

"Nothing terribly exciting," I answered, grabbing the bottom of the sweatshirt and pulling it over my head.

"Oh, I can tell." I smiled, throwing my sweatshirt on the ground and walking over to them.

"What are you doing over here, anyway?" I asked after a moment of thought.

"Your mom called and asked me to bring some clothes." He held them up, and I nodded. He looked up and down at Roxas. "I don't know why, though. I doubt they'll fit her." We all laughed. Hayner left the clothes by the curb and Roxas and I returned to the lawn to hose ourselves down. Now that I had taken off the sweatshirt, I really only had to spray my legs and hair, but Roxas apparently didn't realize.

I turned away and stepped on the back of my shoe, pulling my foot out, and then repeated the process with the other. I sighed. The second I turned around, a stream of water flew through the air and hit me dead in the face.

---

And– voila!

Chapter 9!!

This chapter-food fight

next chapter-water fight??

Not quite.

Hope you liked it!

And thanks for sitting through my amazing long thank you list. :)

I figured it was about time some people got their respect paid to them.


	10. Chapter 10

Thank you thank you for all the love!! And special thanks to kai lun an who gave me my 50th review!!!! THANKS!

Anyways... this chapter is nonsense-ful and has near nothing to do with anything. Trouble on Namine's part with DUNDUNDUN!!! the evil dad-meister!!!! (GASP!) Okay, so yeah. Here you go. :)

Chapter 10:

_I turned away and stepped on the back of my shoe, pulling my foot out, and then repeated the process with the other. I sighed. The second I turned around, a stream of water flew through the air and hit me dead in the face._

My mouth fell open once the water had been averted. "Roxas," I gushed. "First you attack me with pudding, and now with water?" Really, I felt stupid. I knew Roxas better than to assume he wouldn't do something like that. I loved it, though. One of his many adorable traits.

He smiled at me, still sticky with pudding, only some of it having been washed off with the water. He dropped the still pouring hose and walked over to me. "I'm sorry," He cooed sarcastically, hugging me. I knew already that Roxas would be a very physical boyfriend. Not that I minded, I felt a sort of tremor run through me every time we touched. It was nervous, and exciting all at the same time, and as uncomfortable as I would have thought it would make me, I loved it. I had never felt like this before. When I opened my eyes, my hands were resting on Roxas's forearms and my forehead on his chest. I focused on the sound of his breathing, so much so that I didn't notice the door of my house opening and closing. Or rather, I noticed without really grasping the meaning behind it.

And then BAM! Roxas and I instinctively split apart to move away from the gushing water, still moving between us to back us up. I squeaked a little, and turned to see my father, holding the hose, and literally red. Like, I'm not talking slight flush or that whole pink thing most people get going on. He was seriously the crimson color of the sour cherries that would be used in the pie I would soon bake to get on his good side again. But I had a feeling that this time, sweets wouldn't do the trick.

Suddenly, he threw the hose down to the grass, where it bounced just slightly, sending crystalline drops across the grass before drowning it in water. "I invite you into my home for a nice meal, and you ruin my kitchen," He bellowed. I glanced at Roxas. The words seemed to bounce right off of him. "My wife allows you to clean up in our front yard, and you ruin my lawn," He motioned to the hose we had left running, previously. "I try to be as gracious as possible about accepting the fact that you are now _dating _my daughter, and you _ruin _my child!"

"Daddy!" I yelled. He pulled me back a little and gently pushed me in the direction of the front porch. My shoulder ached where his fingers had dug into my flesh.

"Now." His tone spoke loud enough to make up for the words he had lacked. There would be No. Argument. It was over before it had even began. I took a deep breath and stiffened considerably. He had already set into Roxas about nothing in particular, and I swallowed down the lump in my throat that told me nearly audibly 'go now, calm him later'. And for the first time in my life, I ignored it.

"No." My voice was far from steady, but the point made its way through. For the first time since my father came out, Roxas showed a speck of fleeting emotion.

"Namine, don't. It's really my–"

"He didn't do anything." My father turned slowly to face me, shock and disapproval apparent on his face. His face was all scrunched up from his anger, the creases were many, and the lines, infinite, blending into one another. His mouth twitched.

"Excuse me?" Now that lump said 'run. For your life. This is not a drill. Not a joke. Just run. Roxas will be okay.' And going on time number two, I was headed straight for my own personal record.

"Roxas didn't do anything," I repeated again, slower. "I don't know how I could have made that any more obvious."

"Namine–" My father's hand stopped him from speaking.

"Namine, inside. _Now_."

"No." This whole defiance thing was getting easier, though I still didn't like it. Roxas clamped his mouth shut audibly and I moved past my angered father. "I'll be home tomorrow," It was the scariest thing I had ever done to walk past my father, take Roxas's hand, walk _away _from my house, still messy, still wet, and down the street, ignoring my father's glares and shouts.

Once we were around the corner, I sat down on the sidewalk and buried my face in my hands. Roxas didn't say anything at first, he just sat down next to me, legs crossed, and pulled me into his lap. It seemed as if he had expected this to happen, and was just waiting for the moment in which it did. He blew softly onto the side of my face as he spoke. He said nothing that I expected him to say. He didn't talk about how it was a stupid thing to do, he didn't talk about how I shouldn't have made such a big deal out of it. He said simply, "So brave. I'm very proud of you." And then rocked me gently back and forth. Me and my goopy hair/clothes.

"That was the scariest thing I have ever done," I admitted quietly. His chest rumbled with soft laughter.

I expected something like 'and you shouldn't have done it', but instead received, "And none of it was your fault. It was all me. I'll try to talk to your dad, and if he thinks hugs and kisses are a problem, then we'll cut down. Really, I shouldn't have kissed you yet, anyway."

I didn't respond. Shouldn't have kissed you... I had many ways of interpreting that statement, but with which did he mean to imply it? I didn't know. And so I pondered it silently until his voice cut into my thoughts.

"Sorry if I came on too strong. It's just that... I've wanted you for so long, and know that I know I have you," He brushed a few chocolate caked strands of hair out of my face and smiled. "It's so much harder to control the way I feel. Not that I really want to,"

I waited for something more, but realized nothing else would come, and asked on a sudden thought, "How do we cut back on kissing?" After, I realized what it was that I had said. I flushed when he began laughing.

"Well, it's mostly an effort on my part. It's been all me for the whole half an hour we've been dating, if that long." I smiled. He had a way of relaxing me without really doing anything. I eased up in his arms, without knowing when I had tensed. "How about we start small?"

"Small?" He nodded, I prodded. "Show me?" I asked, trying not to smile when he did.

He leaned in a little, his face close to mine, and brushed his eyelashes against my cheek. "Butterfly kisses," He leaned in a little more and touched the tip of his nose to mine. "Eskimo kisses," he brushed his lips very softly against mine, and then moved away. "Sweet kisses."

"Oh my God," I breathed. I couldn't easily contain the emotions that were making me shiver just slightly.

"Did I do something wrong?" He asked, worried, and abruptly gave me more room.

"Yes." And there was no way I was telling him that I could hardly breathe with the way he made my heart jump around in my chest. "I... let's go." I stood up quickly, too quickly and got a rush headache. He stood up slower than I did, groaning as he hauled himself up off the concrete.

"Whatever you want," He said sweetly, taking my hand off of my forehead and pulling me along the sidewalk. "So where are you staying, tonight?"

Crap. I had said that, hadn't I? That I would be back tomorrow. Meaning I had nowhere to be... _tonight_. The things that this boy got me into. "I guess... Kairi's?"

"Mm, guess again." I looked up at him in confusion, but he wasn't even looking my way. I swung our hands back a little and he looked down. "Olette lives closer to me." Involuntarily, my lips curled into a smile that I wasn't able to stop, but _had _succeeded in partially suppressing, so that it was smaller than it would have been.

"Right. Olette's," He smiled, too, and we walked the rest of the way in silence, smiling and holding hands.

Roxas walked with me up to Olette's front door, releasing my hand when the doorbell sounded. Olette's mother answered. "Hello, kids. Olette isn't here right now, but she'll be home in a few hours. She went with her father to look at new cars." After getting her to promise that Olette would call us when she got in, Roxas and I walked a few houses down to his house. He opened the door and pulled me into his house; I shut the door behind us.

"Baby, is that you?" A lady called from the other room. I knew right away it must have been his mother from the– His mother. Although I had been to Roxas's house a few times before, I had never actually met his parents.

"Yeah. I have a friend here too," He called back, smiling at me.

"Well bring them in! I'm just sitting in here reading. It's nothing terribly exciting." He chuckled a bit.

"We'll be right there." Roxas took off his shoes before stepping onto the carpet, reminding me that I had none. I curled my toes, awkwardly in my socks, tugging at the bottom of the skirt that was hideously mismatched with my yellow shirt.

"Roxas, I look horrible." When really, disastrous would have been more fitting.

"You're beautiful," He disagreed lightly, poking my forehead like I was a child.

"What if your mom doesn't like me?" He shrugged.

"So?"

"So? _So_? Roxas, I could walk in there, she could hate me, and I might never be allowed in your house again!" I was only vaguely aware of how much of an idiot I was being, and I didn't bother paying attention to the fact.

He laughed. "Then we'll hang out in other places." He smiled at me. "Namine, look at your dad. He hates me, and he hasn't even known me for a day. My mom loves everyone, she'll _adore _you. Our parents aren't enough to keep me away from you, so if that's what you're looking for, look a little harder." He grabbed my hand, not willing to hear my protests and pulled me swiftly into the other room.

A very lovely brunette woman sat on the couch with her legs tucked up under her and her fingers wrapped around a coffee mug. She was the very epitome of radiance. Casual and beautiful all the same, she sported dark brown eyes, perfectly matching her dark brown hair (which was only a little lighter than the chocolate stains on my shirt). She was petite, with a slim frame, and probably wouldn't be very tall when she stood. Her face was gentle, even before she looked my way, and flawless, no signs of aging from the past fifteen years. She stood slowly. I was right. She wasn't very tall, barely standing over Roxas.

He hugged her warmly, she didn't bother to complain or even mention his filthy clothes, which couldn't hold a candle to mine, but still. When she pulled away, there were small smears of powder on her shirt, and she just smiled, brushing them to the floor. And then she turned to me.

"Hello, dear. You must be Namine." I nodded quietly, embarrassed for no reason. It shouldn't have been so important to me, meeting his mother. I think I was blowing it out of proportion, but it was still hard to get over. She held her hand out, and I held it gently in my own, shaking it quickly before I released it. I fiddled with my fingers behind my back. "Roxas had told me you were pretty, but I hadn't quite known what to expect." Her voice was soft, like a television grandmother, the kind that sits around all day smiling and knitting, but she sounded more authoritative. "You are even lovelier than I had pictured." I stammered like an idiot, unable to work up a thank you of any sort, but she kept on. "It is wondrous to be able to finally meet you. Your mother is an absolute angel."

I blushed. "My mother?" Of course she would know my mother. Her child did. And that was the way my mother worked. I should have known.

"Oh yes. Pretty, just like you, and very sweet. She makes the most interesting cookies," She cocked her head to one side for a moment, and Roxas snickered under his breath. Cookies? She actually _ate _my mother's cookies?? My mother _brought _her cookies??? I could have just flavored a rock chili and shoved it down her throat and she would have had more of a fine dining experience than my mother's cookies. "But a wonderful person."

"Thank you," I returned, quietly.

She smiled at me. I felt like a better person just being _near _her. She had a sort of glow that seemed to radiate from her, not only beauty, but kindness and love as well. "Would you like to stay for dinner, Namine? Roxas's father will be home from work in just about ten minutes, and once my husband's sister and her family get here, we can begin eating."

"Um, I would love to, but I couldn't. I–"

"She'll stay," Roxas cut in. I glanced at him, surprised.

"Oh how enchanting. You kids can head upstairs if you'd like, and wait for the others to arrive." Roxas nodded and began to pull me off toward his staircase when the doorbell rang. "I'll send your cousin up, dear." He waited no longer to drag me up the rest of the way.

"Roxas!" I scolded quietly once we were upstairs. "I can't have _dinner _with your family! Even your _cousins_? What were you thinking?"

"Relax," He smiled. "It's just Sora and his mom, then me and my parents. Don't worry," He said, throwing at shirt at me once we were in his room. The shirt smacked me in the face and I pulled it off, aggravated.

"Roxas," I groaned.

"Hey Roxas! What's... oh. Hey, Namine. What happened to you guys?" I turned to face Sora, who stood at the doorway holding a little girl's hand. I felt something hit the back of my head and I stumbled forward a bit. I wheeled around and pulled the shorts from the back of my neck.

"Put those on," Roxas commanded, already taking off his shirt.

"Roxas!" I yelled, and averted my eyes.

Sora laughed. He turned back toward the door and motioned with his head for me to follow. "Come on. The bathroom is this way." Still blushing I followed my friend.

"Thanks," I said, mulling over the clothes Roxas had thrown at me.

"So um, what... _did _happen to you?" He repeated his earlier question, regripping on the small girl's hand. I hadn't seen her before, and I knew Sora was an only child, but She looked just like him. The same shade of chocolate hair, only hers was shoulder length, and hidden beneath a hat that she kept fixing after it fell over her eyes. The hat was black, and had little antennas coming off of it, and two big yellow eye-like circles. She was in a little black dress, as well. "Namine?" He asked, seeing as how I had spaced out. "What happened?"

A gift from God, the very best thing ever, my own personal miracle in the making. "Your cousin."

---

okay so, that was it for this chapter, hope you liked (because I didn't) and since I don't have ANY ideas AT ALL for the luverly dinner that shall take place, if you have any, id be more than happy to incorporate them. :) and of course, your name will be mentioned if you give me ideas. So then... I guess... that's it for now?

AND!!!! once I gather up the list, I'm going to make a recommended stories thing on my profile, so ill let you all know when that happens. :)

many loves till next time!!


	11. Chapter 11

GAH! Stupid FFNet wouldn't let me upload! I tried and I tried and... (sob) here it is. Finally.

Woo! Sorry the update took so long, and it isn't even that great of a chapter. (Shakes head in disapproval) Oh well. At least it's finally here. Anywhoozzzz, I finally got _something _up as far as recommendations go, unfortunately, so far, there are only three stories. But fear not! I will find more to recommend to you! I promise! Anyways, music that helped me write this chapter: Thunder Acoustic by Boys Like Girls; The Kill by 30 Seconds To Mars; I Want To Know You More by SonicFlood; and Kiss Me by Sixpence None The Richer. darn nichole for getting me hooked on those first two

Of course you all know I own nothing. So that goes without saying. But I said it anyway. Coz I rock.

Chapter 11:

"_Namine?" He asked, seeing as how I had spaced out. "What happened?"_

_A gift from God, the very best thing ever, my own personal miracle in the making. "Your cousin."_

I closed the door without waiting for him to reply and began to change, not bothering to turn the lock. I was standing right by the door, and they knew I was changing, so I was safe. The clothes were too big, and they fit funny, being for a guy and whatnot. I used the sink to clean the food off of my face and examined myself in the mirror. My hair was still a mess, and I pulled the small rubber band out of it. Why even bother? The shorts fit comfortably after I retied the draw string, and the shirt hung loosely off of me, touching only my shoulders, and a little of my chest.

A small knock sounded at the door and I turned to find Roxas poking his head through. He smiled. "That always was my favorite shirt," He said, opening the door and leaning against the frame. "It looks better on you." I smiled. I didn't have to _be _pretty for him to make me _feel _pretty.

"Thanks," I said, quietly.

"So, Sora says you spaced out on him," He said, and Sora grinned at me from behind his blonde cousin. He walked into the bathroom and fished through a drawer until he found what he was looking for. He pulled out a black brush that didn't even look used, and held it out to me, closing the drawer with a touch of his hip as he turned. I silently took the brush and began to work it through my tangled mess of hair. Small bits of chocolate floated to the ground when they were chipped away, but mostly the brush just softened my locks. I ended up tying it into a ponytail anyway.

The four of us- me, Roxas, Sora, and the little girl- walked down the stairs when Sora's mother called "Children!!" Roxas and I ended up hopping from the bottom stair together as Sora helped the little girl who was wobbling along slowly as she focused on moving down and down and down. We waited for them at the bottom.

"She's so cute," I mumbled to Sora when we were walking into the kitchen.

"She _looks _cute," He grumbled back. "But the little monster can be completely heartless." (AN- lololol, pun.) I smiled. He was overreacting.

"Who is she?"

"My little cousin. She's staying with us for a while, but she'll be leaving soon. Then I'm _free_." I muffled my laughs as Sora's mother bonked him on the head.

"Living under my roof, you are _never _free." He gave her a goofy grin. Sora was so cute, he looked just like Roxas. I loved the way he could smile at you sometimes, just leaving you temporarily blinded, no matter who you were. I shuddered to think of the extra effect it might have on Kairi. Sora hung back with me while everyone was sitting around the table. It was a big table, I hadn't noticed it's size before, but there was room enough for everyone, and possibly a few more. "Slave child!" Sora's mother called humorously. "Come sit, and bring Namine." I opened my mouth to protest, to nix Roxas's claims that I would be staying, but it didn't happen. The doorbell rang. I turned to glance back at it, and my gaze went back to the table. Nobody moved.

"Are you coming?" Roxas asked.

"Are you... are you going to get that?" I asked, uncomfortable with all the eyes on me.

"Family rule," Roxas said, smiling. "Once we're at the table, we can't get up until we're excused."

"Would you mind getting the door, Namine?" Roxas's mother asked.

"Um... no." I walked over to the door, confused, to say at the least and opened it. Olette smiled at me. I let out a sigh. "Olette, save me," I mumbled.

"Olette!" A booming voice rang out from behind me. I didn't recognize that voice, had never heard it. I flinched a little at the sound.

"Good evening." Olette smiled sweetly. "I was told that Namine had stopped by, and would wait here for me until I arrived at home, but I got home early, so I decided to stop by and get her." She motioned to the door. Smooth, I thought to myself. "May we?"

"Nonsense," That same voice grunted. "You'll stay as well."

"Dad," Roxas breathed out, low under his breath.

"Olette it's always a pleasure to have your company. Please join us," Roxas's mother cut in. Olette mouthed 'sorry' and I frowned. There apparently was no resisting Roxas's parents.

I walked with Olette back into the kitchen and took the seat Roxas motioned for me to sit in. On his right side. Across from his mother. And next to his father, I assumed, because he was the only person at the table I had never seen before.

For the most part, we ate in silence. There were a few 'please pass the mashed potatoes' here, and perhaps a 'would you like salt?' there, but nobody really talked during the meal. Afterwards, Mr. Hikari and Roxas's father walked into the family room and I heard the television switch on. Sora stood up and asked if we wanted to go somewhere, so we could all hang out, but I told them I wanted to help clear the table.

"You _want _to help?" Sora gawked as I grabbed glasses and plates and made my way over to the sink. I looked at him over my shoulder.

"I don't mind. Especially after Roxas's parents were so sweet about inviting me over. I owe them for their hospitality." That part was true, though Sora was right. I didn't want to. I hadn't even wanted to be at the meal, but some of the manners taught in my family were hard to ignore.

"Why thank you, Namine, but really, you don't have to. We have this covered," Roxas's mother smiled at me, warmly.

"Oh, I insist," I pressed. There was a clinking of dishes from behind me. I turned and saw Roxas piling up plates, and Olette picking up glasses to follow his example. With all of us(except Sora) working, it took hardly any time at all.

"Thank you so much, kids." Sora's mother said, staring at him without a smile all the while she said it. He shrugged, and we laughed lightly for a moment before running off to the door.

Just as Roxas put his hand on the knob, there were footsteps behind us. He turned back for just a second, and then smiled apologetically at me. I didn't know what that meant, so I turned around and his father was standing behind us, arms folded and smiling. Roxas's father was tall and he looked muscular, with light blonde hair and deep blue eyes; He was intimidating. He had a friendly face, clean shaven and happy looking, but it was well in contrast with the rest of his body.

"Namine," He presumed, and I nodded a little. "Oh finally!" He boomed, laughing. He reached out, and unlike Roxas's mother who gently shook my hand, he grabbed my shoulder and pulled me in for a bear hug. I clenched my teeth as his arms barricaded me, and then lifted me off the ground for just a second. Nobody behind me seemed surprised. He set me back down and ruffled my hair, which I was too embarrassed to fix. "Good to know you, kiddo. I was wondering when Roxas would bring you home." He gave Roxas a thumbs up and a wink. "Good for you." Then he shooed us out of the house, giving Roxas extra money for whatever we decided to do.

We walked outside, Sora giving the little girl a piggy back ride. I realized I still didn't know her name. "Sora," I said suddenly, and he looked over at me. "What's your cousin's name?" I asked, and I was vaguely aware of Roxas smoothing my hair out for me.

He furrowed his eyebrows then looked around me for a second. When his eyes fell on me again, he said "Roxas. Geez, Namine, it's one thing to forget, but to ask right in front of him is kinda..."

I rolled my eyes. "I _meant _your _little _cousin."

"Oh!" He laughed a little. "Oh, her. Her name is actually Shaelyn."

"But we call her Shadow," Roxas finished. "She likes it more. Right, baby?" He asked, pushing her bangs out of her face and pulling her hat up a little more. She smiled at him and nodded.

I couldn't help myself. "Aw, Roxas she's so cute!" I squeaked, and turned to him, shaking my head. He laughed.

"Yeah, she is." He looked at me kinda funny, and I knew he was trying to tell me that he thought I was cute, too. I blushed and turned away.

After a while of walking with no place to go, we passed an ice cream shop. Shaelyn gasped at the door, so we went in. She was bouncing up and down on Sora's back, and Olette laughed with me, both of us entertained with her display of adorability. When we were inside, Sora let her down and she grabbed Roxas's hand, running off to the other side of the store and pulling him with her. I smiled, but I wanted Roxas to come back.

"Small vanilla cone," Sora said to the lady at the counter, then ordered two more and turned to me and Olette.

"I don't like cones," I said. "So I'll just have the Sea Salt Ice," I looked over to where Roxas was inserting multiple quarters into a machine that dispensed plastic jewelry. After every quarter, he allowed Shaelyn to twist the little metal handle and reach in to get the jewelry, which he helped her to put on. He looked up at me, and I caught him smile as I turned away, pretending he hadn't noticed me, and slightly embarrassed that he had. Sora handed me and Olette our ice cream, or popsicle, in my case, and carried the others over to Roxas and Shaelyn.

He held one out to Roxas, and I heard him say, "'Kay, Shadow, which one do you want?" She picked the chocolate. I turned around, feeling out of their circle as I walked with Olette to the door. We stood around outside and waited. I heard the door open, but didn't turn around. I was startled when I felt something around my neck, and a hand pushed my hair aside. A cold chain fell to the back of my neck, and I looked down. There was a small, plastic, blue ring on a chain hanging from my neck. Roxas smiled at me and walked ahead, hand in hand with Shaelyn. Olette walked with them and Sora hung back with me.

"You know, Namine, don't tell Roxas I said this, but I think he likes you." I smiled, laughing inwardly.

"I had a feeling," I said. "I like him, too."

"I had a feeling." I looked over at him, and he was licking his ice cream, looking far away in terms of thoughts. He didn't speak again until I realized we were coming up on Kairi's house. "Are you gonna tell him?" He asked, finally, stopping at the edge of the grass with me, just as Roxas was walking back. Olette went to the door.

"He already knows," I said just as Roxas slid his arm around my waist, pulling me closer to him.

Sora looked at both of our faces, smiled, and went to greet Kairi. Roxas pressed his lips to my forehead, letting out a deep breath. "Who knows what now?"

I blew off his question. "Thank you, Roxas." I fiddled with the chain that held the ring. "I love it."

His breath fanned my face as he laughed. "I'm glad."

"Well now," Kairi's voice cut in. "What's all this?"

---

OMG! They have to confess what's going on!! SCANDALOUS! No, not really, but that (hopefully) makes for a better next chapter.

Anyway, that's it for now, unless I can magically pull another chapter out of my bucket-o-gravy, which... I don't think I can.

No, I don't really have a bucket-o-gravy.

O yeah. Thanks.


	12. Chapter 12

Tell me when this is through if it felt like a short chapter to you, please? So! Have any of you tried the recommendations list?? PM me if you have, and tell me what YOU thought of the stories, or if you have a suggestion for another one to add to the list. :)

inspiring music: Here In Your Arms by Hellogoodbye, Every Time We Touch by Cascada, and Misery Business by Paramore (yeah, THAT one was on repeat. DARN YOU BAILEY! Its just SUCH a good soooooong! If you haven't heard it, I very seriously suggest you listen. It rocked me right out of my holey, well trodden socks)

Chapter 12:

"_Thank you, Roxas." I fiddled with the chain that held the ring. "I love it."_

_His breath fanned my face as he laughed. "I'm glad."_

"_Well now," Kairi's voice cut in. "What's all this?"_

Roxas shifted to give me more room, but never moved his arm from my waist. I was flushed, I'm sure, but oddly enough, I was glad he hadn't moved his arm. It felt like it meant something, to me. "Just a hug," He said, and moved his other arm around me, pulling me to him again. His lips were at my ear when he whispered "Do you want them to know?"

I shrugged lightly under his grip and he pulled away, arm and all. Kairi looked skeptical. "Yeah," She said. "Right." She turned on her heel and began toward Selphie's house, down the street. Roxas followed far back and kept me back with him.

I was still thinking about his question when he brought it up. "Do you want them to know?" He repeated.

"What does that _mean_?" I asked.

"I mean," He smiled. "If you don't want to tell them, we don't have to, and we'll just act natural around them, but if you want them to know, I'd be more than happy to tell them the truth. It's like I said before, everything from here is up to you."

That reminded me of something else I'd been meaning to ask... _"So much more than I can tell you." _What was that again? "I want them to know," I said suddenly, and he smiled at me, ever calm as he was. "I want you to tell them, though. I... I don't think I can."

He laughed a little. "How about, since you're spending the night at Olette's," He grinned at me. "You tell the girls, and I'll take the guys." I was about to protest, and he must have noticed because then he said, "And just remember, you have three girls to tell. I have double that many guys to handle." I frowned and nodded, unwilling.

He smiled and took my hand. I was still going to be difficult. "You seem rather happy about this," I spat. He wasn't fazed.

"I'm just looking forward to my best friends knowing that the most important person to me is finally _aware _of her position in my life." It was suddenly billions of times more difficult to be angry with him than it would have been a moment ago.

"And that girl is...?" Of course I knew, conceited as it sounds, but I wanted to hear him say it. To call me, in so many words, his 'most important person'.

"That'd be you, Nam." He said, planting a small kiss on my cheek.

"Oh," I paused. "Well then that's okay."

"Hurry up you guys!" Kairi called and Roxas, still holding my hand, ran to them, pulling me along. Kairi watched our hands, intertwined between us, with much suspicion in her eyes. She looked up at me and clicked her tongue in an annoyed way. Selphie winked at me and laughed, running up to make pace with Kairi.

I looked at Roxas, and he just smiled and released my hand. "You want to tell them now?" I bit my lip, but nodded, taking his hand once more.

"I don't want to do it alone," I admitted, sheepishly. I thought, when I turned that I heard him say _"never alone" _but I couldn't tell for sure. "Did you say something?" I asked, turning back to him.

He looked at me awkwardly. "No. Why?"

"Um..." I blushed. "Never mind." Way to go over active imagination! Look like an idiot because of hormone driven thoughts! I heard him laughing behind me.

"Namine, calm down, you're going to rip my hand off!" I gasped a little and let go of his hand.

"I'm sorry!" I exhaled not pausing to show him my reddened face. He was at my side frowning in just a second. He seemed mad, but I couldn't think of a reason he would be.

"I didn't want that," He said, quietly. "I didn't want you to let go." I looked up at him, sure my imagination was running again, but he stared back at me, frustrated. "Can I hold your hand again?"

"You don't have to ask."

He shrugged. "It felt right." I slipped my hand into his larger one, and as stupid as it sounds... it seemed to fit. Perfectly. His frustration melted into quiet satisfaction and his shoulders dropped a little. He was relaxed, it made me smile. Then all of a sudden, he seemed tense again. "Namine,"

"Roxas?"

"I... I kind of want to admit something." I looked at him strangely, but he didn't meet my eye to see.

"What?" I asked, careful not to sound expectant of bad news.

"Well... it's kind of embarrassing, and I'm sorry and all... it was a while ago... forever ago, ancient history, even. It was before I even met you, and–"

"Roxas," I pressed lightly. He swallowed audibly.

"Do you remember when I used to go by your house every day to see Hayner?" I nodded, not that he would look at me to see. "Do you remember Hayner telling you that he _hadn't_ seenme in a while, even _though_ I went by your house every day?" Again I nodded. "For a long time... I would ride by your house just to see you outside drawing. It wasn't that... I didn't really have a reason, I just kind of... I don't really have an excuse either, but I'm sorry. I just thought you should know."

"Oh," was the only response I could muster to hide my disbelief.

"I'm sorry."

"You..." I cleared my throat and began again, nervous that my palms might start sweating while he held my hand. "You don't have to be sorry. I... think it's sweet."

He scoffed. "Yeah, in that creepy stalker way that just makes everything seem _so _romantic."

I smiled. "No! I mean, it really is kind of cute. You really rode by just to see me?"

"The most fleeting of looks, but yes." I couldn't stop the smile that formed on my lips then, nor would I have wanted to.

"Well what are we waiting for? Let's go tell them." I started to pull him up, drawing ever nearer to our friends, and he laughed.

"You don't want to wait for them all to be here?"

"What's the point? They'll hear it from each other, anyway, won't they?"

"I guess." One look at his face, and I decided that we would wait.

"Fine," I said. "but then we should hurry up." He smiled, and took out his cell phone, waving it in the air for a second.

"Always ready," The sun glanced off the screen when he opened it and I leaned over his shoulder to see who he was calling. He smirked and pulled it a little farther away from me. I frowned, and followed, and then his lips found my forehead for just a second. Before I really noticed, the phone was at his ear, and he was halfway through his conversation.

"-will pick us up. Yeah." Pause. "If it's not too much trouble. There are some... news that we have to have everybody for." He smiled at me, and I at him. He flipped his phone closed after a "Thanks. Bye." and then opened it again, calling Wakka. "Hey man. Can you pick..." He counted heads for a second. "Seven of us up? No, I'll share a seat with someone. Okay, thanks. We're between Selphie's house and mine. When you– Yeah. Okay. Bye."

"What was that, again?"

"Guys!" He called up, ignoring me. They turned back. "Wakka's picking us up, okay? And then Riku is getting Hayner, Pence, and Tidus and we're all gonna meet at the mall." They agreed in short, and in no time, the twelve of us (eleven+Shadow) were sitting in the food court at the mall, Roxas being the only one to stand.

"Okay, so... I guess it isn't really 'breaking news' or anything, but," He put his hand on my head in what was both casual, and loving, and finished with, "Namine and I are going out." Of course it took a second for that to sink in, and when it did, there was jumping and screaming and squeaks and mock cheers. Roxas and I laughed, and I stood up to be next to him, his arm around my shoulder and my arms around his waist as Pence took a few too many photos of what he would later call 'a momentous occasion'. The only one who hadn't been instantly struck with joy was Riku.

He was still sitting at the table, staring, open mouthed at the table. "Riku? What's wrong?" Everyone kind of quieted down and looked over at our platinum haired friend.

"Seriously?" He asked, quietly.

"Don't you mean _finally_?" Hayner asked, slapping Roxas on the back.

"You're really going out?"

"Yeah." My smile faded as I moved away from Roxas toward Riku. "What is it?"

"Please tell me this is a joke." I was taken aback. Riku had always been more than supportive of everything pro-me-and-Roxas, but now, he just seemed so stricken.

"Riku," Sora started, putting his hand on Riku's shoulder, but he shrugged it off. "Come on."

"Namine?" He looked up at me. I was speechless. No words to express anything I felt right now, but the mumbled stutters that spoke of my confusion. He stood, so much taller than me, staring down at me with his sea colored eyes. "Are you really?" I nodded, my throat feeling dry as I stared up at him, with my head inclined almost totally to meet his eyes. He took both my hands in his and held them up in front of me. "Please."

"Riku... I..." I looked back at Roxas, but he was just staring at us, expectantly. He almost seemed to be enjoying this. In fact, almost everybody seemed to find this funny. I didn't think there was anything mildly humorous about the situation, especially when I felt my fingers spread on Riku's chest, and felt the steady beating of his heart. "I am."

His features crumbled, and when he looked up again...

---

what?

WHAT????

WHEN HE LOOKED UP AGAIN WHAT?!?!?!?!?!!?!?!?!

OMG, THE ANTICIPATION!

Short chapter? Do tell.

But yes, a cliffy. I hate them, myself, but here we go.

Nothing interesting, so chill.

In fact, probably not what you think at all.

ABSOLUTELY NOOOOOO KUDOS TO MY EVIL DENTIST WHO I HATE!

Anyways, here I go. To sleep. [many many thankYOUS are in order to Zakurowhip12 mah real life bestie for being awesome and inspirational as I write. AH LUFF JOO YA BIG FLUFF!


	13. Chapter 13

Yes... well... sorry I've been busy and I've been writing another story(not a fic) and school just started and ani-jam and blahblahblah. The list goes on.

Anyways, I knew that I had to update, but this is a short chapter...

Um... since it so short, at the end, ill give you a crappy summary of my other story, just so you can see what's been holding me up.

Um... anyway... uneventful and boring, but the next one will be better, I promise.

Thanks.

Chapter 13:

"_Riku... I..." I looked back at Roxas, but he was just staring at us, expectantly. He almost seemed to be enjoying this. In fact, almost everybody seemed to find this funny. I didn't think there was anything mildly humorous about the situation, especially when I felt my fingers spread on Riku's chest, and felt the steady beating of his heart. "I am."_

_His features crumbled, and when he looked up again..._

His features crumbled, and when he looked up again... he was muttering something unintelligible under his breath, looking very dissatisfied, and digging through his back pocket. Everyone but me and Riku started laughing, and I was still shocked/mortified. "W-what?" I eased in, but nobody heard me. Roxas put his arms around me and pulled me closer, kissing the top of my head, still smiling humorously.

"Screw you all!" Riku exclaimed, throwing his wallet down on the table. "Except you, Namine. You're sweet and innocent, and a REAL friend," He shouted 'real' back at the others, who were digging through the bills in his wallet. "It isn't all in there, so I have to go back home and get more." He stood there, flaming, and with a string of profanities like I had never heard before. "And if _any _of you think you're riding with me, forget it! Stupid bet..." He mumbled when he walked away.

"B...bet?"

"Namine," Roxas said, pulling me away. "Promise not to get mad if I tell you this?" I nodded, confused, and looked back at my friends, who were dividing the money into nine small stacks. Nine? Why nine? "Since everybody knew I liked you, they kind of all made bets on how long it would take me to ask you out. Pretty much everybody sided with Riku at first, since when they made the bet, you kind of... hated me, and no matter what I did, you weren't getting any better. But then I took you to Sunset Hill. Hayner found out, and switched his side of the bet, and then... everybody switched, well, everybody but Riku, and Sora let slip the secret to me. So, just to prove them that I _could _ask you out, I put a bet on myself, although, I'm not sure the bet still stands, since I didn't ask you out, and you kind of just... _declared _us dating."

I flushed. The bet I could handle, I just felt bad for poor Riku. I'd help him get his money back if I had to... But, I declared us dating? Did I really? The way he said it, it sounded like he had no say in the matter, and I knew that wasn't the case. I tried to ignore that last part. "_Almost _everybody sided with Riku? Well, you can't have a bet if there's only one side going. Who was on our side from the start?" Roxas looked up and smiled at the one person refusing their share of the money, whom I should have suspected from the start, and really the only person that _deserved _the share they were taking, only to give back to Riku. "Olette..." I said quietly.

"Olette," He repeated, hugging me closer.

"I should have known."

"She's a great person."

"She is," I agreed, smiling at her. She wasn't looking our way, but I felt so moved by her sheer confidence in Roxas. I felt Roxas's lips press lightly against my cheek, and my smile widened. "So," I began. "What now?"

"Now," He mimicked my tone, speaking with his lips still against my skin. "You still have to ask Olette if you can stay the night at her house." He took his lips from my face and pressed his cheek against mine. "Did you forget?" I blushed a little, I _had _forgotten. "Your cheek is warm," He laughed a little. "I'll stop." He pulled away, still holding me from behind. I wanted to object; to tell him that I wanted to stay like that a while longer, but I didn't.

"But... _right _now?" I asked, leaning back into his shoulder.

"Right now," He said quietly, and released all of me but my hand. "I'll go with you," He said, walking with me as we approached our money-hoarding friends. Olette carefully banded the money with an extra hair tie and put it in her pocket. I knew she'd be returning it to our silver haired friend. Roxas grabbed up one of the piles and shoved it roughly in his pi\pocket, flashing me a silly smile that I couldn't have resisted even if I was blind. "Olette," He said turning to her, but a few others were listening as they counted their money. "Would you hate me forever if I asked you to let Namine spend the night tonight?"

She cracked a smile. "I would," She said. "I would hate you forever, but she can stay."

Kairi frowned beside me. "Why don't you want to stay at my house? I live the closest to you."

"But Olette lives the closest to _me_." Roxas squeezed my hand and Kairi huffed, though I knew she was ecstatic for me.

"Should you ask your parents first?" Olette cut in again, always responsible.

"Um..." I thought of my enraged father sitting at home, and imagined the wonders my mother could work on him if they had time alone. "They already know. I'll... tell you later."

"Guys," Roxas said, turning away from me, but refusing to let go of my hand. "You staying the night at my house tonight?" There were murmurs and nods and eventually they agreed, some of them saying they weren't sure if they could, but assuring Roxas that they would check. As if any of their parents would refuse.

"Well then Olette, why don't Kai and I stay out your house tonight, too? It'll be fun." Olette agreed quickly, and we all squished into Wakka's car, all terribly uncomfortable. Because his car sat seven, and there were eleven of us, the seating went something like this: Wakka drove, and Pence was at his side in the passenger's seat. Sora took one of the captains chairs in the middle, with Shaelyn on his lap, and Kairi in the seat next to him. Selphie sat between the two seats on the floor, facing backwards so she could talk to Tidus, who was sitting in the middle seat in the very back. Hayner was on his right and Olette had squished in next to him, neither of them wearing seatbelts. Crammed up against Tidus's other side was Roxas, and I sat on his lap. Really, if we were pulled over we'd be, as Sora had said "seriously screwed with the fuzz" earning a great laugh from all of us, of course with the exception of Shaelyn, who didn't understand what he had meant.

The car ride didn't last long, not nearly long enough for me, and soon we were parked in Olette's driveway, all killing each other to get out first, not thinking about the pain involved when so many people try to cram out of a car door all at once. I jumped down, being one of the last out of the vehicle and landed swiftly on my feet, smiling at Olette, who was waiting for me before opening her door.

She entered the house, everybody else filing in behind her. "Mom, Dad," She called out. "We're all here!" There was only a 'Hey kids. Make yourselves at home' for a response. I loved Olette's parents, though they didn't seem to realize that not everybody was quite as responsible as Olette, and therefor put much too much trust in most of us. Sora came in just after me, having run over to Roxas's house to drop off Shaelyn before coming back.

"Alright everybody," Olette said once we'd gone down the hall of her one story home and into her bedroom. "What do you want to do?"

"Truth or Dare?" Someone asked, and I realized I'd never officially played the game.

"I've never played it," I said rather loudly and without thinking. Almost all eye were on me.

"Really?" Pence asked.

"That's so wrong," Tidus continued shaking his head.

"Well, alright then, it's settled. Now that we know, Namine _has _to play it." The door flung open and a snarlingly angry Riku burst through the frame and dropped onto the floor, legs folded as well as his arms. He said nothing, just sat there seething and waiting for us to begin.

"Um..." Kairi started as Sora poked Riku's head, which only resulted in his hand being swatted at, and then Riku folding his arms tightly across his chest again. "Anyway, let's let her go first, since she's new."

I didn't object. It should be a fun experience to play the game with friends. "Okay Namine," Selphie started in, being the first to have a question ready. "How did you and Roxas get so serious so soon?"

---

Eh, okay so that's it for now, short I know, and I'm MONDO sorry about that, but ill try to work on it more without having to rush myself and make the truth or dare game fun and stuff...

Anyways... that summary of my other story...

_How do you deal with a school hating you for no reason, your brother falling for your best(and first) friend, your cousin continually sticking her nose into your business, your new friend's brother being all shady and mysterious(not even counting the fact that he MIGHT like you), your parents suddenly hiding things from you, the thoughts of others whirring mercilessly through your mind, the ever growing possibility of impending(and inevitable) doom unleashing upon you and your family by way of grotesque killing machines only after your kind, and a load of AP homework during the beginning of sophomore year? Allow me to demonstrate._

And if you want, (which you probably won't) I can send you the first chapter, but nothing else, because im thinking about posting it on and I don't want to give too much away if I finally decide to.

Anyway, thanks, again and looks forward to the next one, coz it should be better. :) 333


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

own nothing

um... since im a total jerkface and an extremely evil butthead, this chapter is dedicated to one of my very best friends in the universe, who im (trying to keep my promise of) not speaking to right now.

Um... so... sorry. Love you.

(And just for her, I threw in some haynerxolette lovin. But not much)

Chapter 14:

"_Anyway, let's let her go first, since she's new."_

_I didn't object. It should be a fun experience to play the game with friends. "Okay Namine," Selphie started in, being the first to have a question ready. "How did you and Roxas get so serious so soon?"_

I thought to myself for a second before answering._ Maybe because I more than like him..._ "Wait, aren't I supposed to pick truth or dare?" I asked without thinking much.

Selphie groaned over dramatically. "Truth or dare?" She mumbled.

"Truth." I wanted to play it safe my first time.

"How did you and Roxas get so serious so soon?" Of course. I shouldn't have even bothered to clear the rules. I stuttered for a second before thinking seriously about the question.

Of course I had no answer for this. Soon? Is that what they thought? Didn't they _know _that I had liked Roxas practically since I _met _him? Or maybe they were talking about _him_? Did he not like me until recently? Were they talking about our relationship? Why _were _we so comfortable with it all so soon? Didn't getting used to these types of things take time? We're suddenly more than friends and we're acting as though we've been together forever. Ohmygod. What if Roxas was a womanizer? What is he _was _used to this because he was so used to getting girls? I wouldn't doubt it, he's totally gorgeous. He could probably have any girl short of 'in love' if he wanted them. But he was too nice for that, wasn't he? Maybe it was part of his act? What if he-

"Namine?" Selphie cut in, and I blinked, realizing that I had been staring into space as I stood by the door. "Well?" She pressed.

I glanced over at Roxas and he smiled sweetly at me, patient like the others. I was _literally_ clueless. "I don't know." I answered simply. Selphie frowned.

"You can't just say 'I don't know'! You have to actually answer!"

"But... I don't know. It just feels... right." I shrugged. Roxas moved back to my side and took my hand. When I looked up at him he was smiling lovingly at me and he moved in slightly to peck me on the cheek. I expected to feel my cheeks heat. I expected everybody to smile timidly because I blushed. I didn't expect to turn at the last second, so that my lips met his for just a second.

And then _not _blush because of what I had done.

But he just grinned at me, and pulled me to the bed, sitting down and pulling me onto his lap. He turned back to our friends, who were trying not to look at us, as if to give us privacy. Some were succeeding better than others. "That's a good enough answer, right? So it's her turn now?" Still smiling, Kairi turned back and nodded, urging me to take my turn.

"Oh. Okay then. Um... Riku. Truth or dare?" He grumbled something that I assumed was truth. "Why did you bet against me and Roxas getting together?"

"Ooh, good one." Wakka said quickly. But I didn't care about good questions. I really wanted to know.

"Um..." He didn't seem as mad anymore about his lost money. He really seemed to be thinking it through. "Well, at first, you were really mad at him over something or other, and you just didn't want to talk to him at all," Roxas squeezed my hand a little, and I realized I may not have ever told him why I was so angry, though I'm sure he knew without me saying. "Of course I knew that wouldn't last long, but then I heard that _everybody _else had switched sides, and I was the last to know, so I really didn't have much of a choice. Actually, before I left the house this morning, I loaded my wallet, because I figured it was only a matter of time before you guys got together."

Suddenly reminded, Olette jumped up and took the money from her pocket, running it back over to Riku and smiling at him when he tried to refuse it. "Riku please, it's yours. I really don't like bets anyway, and I'd feel really bad if you didn't take the money back. I can't even imagine keeping it, I'd feel so heartless."

I noticed Hayner hesitate out of the corner of my eye when Olette said that. In a moment, he had stood and returned his money to Riku as well, though it was obvious he wasn't happy about it.

"Thanks guys," He said, smiling at them sincerely. I nudged Roxas with my elbow but he was already tossing the mini-wad through the air into Riku's lap. Nobody else returned their share.

"So then," I started again, and Riku looked up once more. "It wasn't that you thought we couldn't get together, right?"

"Of course not. We were all practically biting our nails off every time you guys talked, just waiting for the idiot to get his nerves up. I think he must of asked about every guy here for advice." I was taken slightly aback at that. Roxas was still relaxed under my weight, but when I turned to look back at him, he was looking off to the side, staring intently at the nothing on Olette's wall and blushing slightly.

"Really?"

"Hey, hey, hey. It's not your turn anymore."

"Fine," I _would _get these answers later.

"Wakka, truth or dare?" Wakka wasn't one to back down from a challenge.

"Dare."

"Give me back my money." Riku held a hand out expectantly, the hint of a smirk on his face. I smiled. Wakka would find some way to get the money back eventually.

"What?!" Wakka yelled, a pink tint forming at his cheeks, symbolic of his anger.

Riku wiggled his fingers. "Money." Grumbling under his breath, Wakka slapped the money down into Riku's hand, taking special care to go that extra mile and hurt him just a little. Riku frowned as he flexed his fingers, but waved the wad at Wakka before pocketing it.

"Tidus!" Wakka yelled, still angry at his money loss.

"Dare." Tidus said, smugly, acting quite full of himself.

"Give me _your _share." Tidus said nothing, but narrowed his eyes at Wakka, slipping him the money while glaring at him through the tiny slits his orbs had become.

"Sora," Tidus said, and Sora picked truth instantly, not one to fall for the tricks that had been set before him twice already. I was surprised at how quickly the game moved. Maybe it was because we were all so familiar with each other already, and just enjoyed making one another suffer, but it was a lot quicker than it seemed to be on tv... "Who do you like?" I gaped. How could he ask that so casually? As if nothing rode on the question? As if Sora _wouldn't _be embarrassed and Kairi wouldn't feel obligated?

But Sora didn't seem embarrassed when he answered, and Kairi didn't seem surprised. In fact, not many of the people there seemed to even care when he responded to the question. "Kairi. Everyone here already knows that."

I cocked my head. _Everybody?_ No matter how well I knew these people, I would never understand them. Kairi knew that Sora liked her? She had it so bad for him! Why weren't they going out? Why didn't she tell him...?

"I wanted to make sure that nobody forgot," Tidus said quietly, eyeing Kairi all the while. But she was watching Sora's fingers fiddle with a strand of her auburn hair. I had seen them do things like this many times. They acted as if they were already a couple, minus the intimate things like kissing and such. They would be so perfect together that I might even be jealous of their relationship _while _I was dating Roxas!

"Oh." Sora replied simply. "Okay then. Um..." His eyes scanned the room. "Olette. Truth or dare?"

"Dare." I was a little surprised. Olette was picking dare? But then again, what would they really be able to dare her?

A slow smile played out on Sora's lips. "Tonight, six o'clock, you go to the White Rose wearing the appropriate attire, and meet the boy there who's holding your favorite flower. Have dinner with him, and just see what happens." The White Rose was the nicest restaurant in town. You hardly ever saw teenagers there.

What a weird dare, I thought, and it was plain in her face that Olette thought the same thing. There was something there we weren't catching onto. Something obvious. I shrugged it off. Oh well.

"Hayner," Olette called the name of the first person she saw, because her mind was still on Sora's dare. "Truth or dare?"

"Dare." But the way he said it made it sound like he was avoiding truth.

"I dare you to admit something embarrassing." Well that felt more like a truth, and I assumed she wouldn't have picked it if she was actually thinking about what she was doing.

His cheeks flushed when he frowned. "I've never kissed a girl." That snapped Olette out.

"Really?" She asked, thought she wouldn't have normally, and everyone looked like a bunch of bobble heads the way they nodded to urge him on. I almost laughed out loud when I realized I was nodding vigorously.

"Um... really. Olette, truth or dare?" She furrowed her eyebrows. I didn't know much about the game, but I didn't think you were supposed to pick someone who had just gone.

"...Truth?"

"What's... What's your favorite flower?"

---

so that was pretty much it for now. Im already working on the next chapter. Namine and roxas all alone in olette's house.

Hm...


	15. Chapter 15

UWAHHH!! NO! EDITEDITEDIT! I messed up something in the last chapter!!! NO! I HATE MYSELF!!!!! it was supposed to say TONIGHT! Olette's dare was supposed to be for TONIGHT! Not _TOMORROW! _What kind of sick negligence was that!!! NOOO! Anyway, now that I've ranted and fixed the problem, I wanted to say thank you to everybody who's reviewing, im SO close to triple digits!!! I gotta say, I never thought that I would get a hundred reviews on anything, and I know I haven't gotten it yet, but I never even expected to get this close. Im so happy everyone likes this story!!

Music for this chapter: Learning to Fall by Boys Like Girls, When We Die by Bowling For Soup, Awekening by Switchfoot, Skateboarding Music by Anti-Flag, and Meet Virginia by Train (DARN YOU NICHOLE!!!!!!!!!!)

As if I hadn't already went on a long enough tangent, I still want to dedicate this chapter.

And it goes to... DRUM ROLL PLEASE!!!! Dark JaylenX WOOO!!!! Thank you so much! You PM made me feel so special!!

And added thanks to Renorin and Aerion for being awesome and asking for the first chapter of my story (it meant a lot to me :)

Chapter 15:

"_Um... really. Olette, truth or dare?" She furrowed her eyebrows. I didn't know much about the game, but I didn't think you were supposed to pick someone who had just gone._

"_...Truth?"_

"_What's... What's your favorite flower?"_

I could only smile.

What a perfect moment this must have ben for Olette. That was one of the most adorable things I'd ever seen in my life. Olette picked her jaw up off the floor and recomposed herself, looking away and answering simply "Hibiscus... Um, what time is it?"

Sora gave her the time and she said that she had to go somewhere with her parents for about a half hour, and that everyone had to leave. I frowned. Hayner was the first one out the door, and I turned back to Roxas, confusion written all over my face, but he just gave me a look that said he would explain later. I furrowed my eyebrows, but turned back around. Everyone was leaving, and I frowned again.

"Olette," I began when everybody but the three of us had gone, meaning to remind her of me, Selphie, and Kairi staying the night at her house. She turned to me and her face was pink, her eyes glassy. I stood up, Roxas let go of me accordingly as I walked to her. I didn't know what to do really, but I wrapped my arms around her in a hug, which she gladly returned. "Are you okay?" I finished, completely cleansed of my original motives.

"Yeah..." She lied, holding in her tears expertly. "Roxas, can you go tell Hayner not to waste his money on that flower?" Roxas sat staring at her for a long time, expression blank, save for his sympathetic eyes. She just stared straight back and when she sniffled, he sighed and got up, hugging both of us goodbye, but adding a small peck on the cheek for me, and then ran down the hall and out the door. "Namine, would you mind staying the night, just you and me, tonight? I kind of want somebody to talk to..."

"I don't mind at all," I said quickly. "Do you want me to call them and tell them, or...?"

"I'll tell them," She sighed. "But–"

"Olette," Her mother called. "Darling, are you coming?"

"Yes, mom. I'll be right there." So she really _did _have somewhere she had to go." She rubbed her eyes and looked back up at me. "You can wait here if you want, it really won't take more than thirty minutes." Roxas walked back into the room, his hand on Olette's arm. "Roxas can wait with you," She suggested quickly, nodding and running out of her room.

Roxas was puzzled, and he looked to me for an answer. I shrugged. "We're here alone until they get back." We heard the door open then close, and the car start up, then drive away. It was awkward for the first few minutes, and I rocked back and forth on my feet. Alone with Roxas... It was nice, but in a way, it was also very uncomfortable.

"So," We both started together. He smiled at me, and I smiled back, and we both had a little laugh. I wasn't completely at ease, but the little burst of sunshine made me relax a little. I went to sit on the bed again, loving how comfortable it was. I wanted a bed like Olette's. My bed was all mushy compared to hers, which was perfection, like it's owner. I sat there pouting and didn't even realize when Roxas sat down next to me.

"Namine," He started, and I jumped a little, turning to him. He was leaning back against the pillows. "You aren't mad at me are you?"

I look at him all confused. "Where did that come from?" Because I really did not know.

"Well," He isn't looking at me. In fact, he's not looking at anything, because he's already closed his eyes. "I mean... Because of the bet." I was pretty sure he expected me to snap at him or something now that we were alone, because he kind of flinched. But I didn't care about the bet, and that was _certainly _not how I was going to be spending my time alone with Roxas.

"I don't care. I mean, you bet on us, right? And it wasn't like there was anybody who _didn't _know how totally in love with you I was and–" I froze, and I noticed that Roxas's one open eye was watching me. He looked lazy, but his gaze was intent. "And... of course I would agree to go out with you once you asked... so..." I finished, trying to act like nothing is wrong, like I didn't just say that, and like I'm not hyperventilating.

"Oh." And he closes his eye again. "Thanks." Maybe he didn't hear me. Maybe he didn't notice that I said I loved him. I didn't really mean it, it wasn't serious. I just feel so comfortable with him that I felt like I was talking t Kairi or somebody. That's how girls talk, right? 'So in love...' That's what they say isn't it? I feel so stupid!!!

I crossed my legs so I was sitting, as they used to say back in kindergarten, criss-cross applesauce. "Roxas," I started, slowly.

"Hm?" He asked, without opening his eyes, and his hand searched for mine. When he found it, he curled his fingers around mine and rubbed his thumb gently along the back of my hand.

"If Selphie had picked... _you _for truth or dare, and asked you the same question, what would you have said?" It was quiet for a long time, and I almost spoke again, but he drew out a 'hmmmmm' for a few seconds and cut me off.

"I wonder..."

"You wonder what?" He smiled. He looked so peaceful, like he was sleeping, almost.

"What I would have said. If it was on the spot, I probably would have just blurted out my feelings for you, but of course, that wouldn't really have answered the question." His feelings for me. I would want to hear that. "If you asked me now, after I had thought about it, my answer would be entirely different."

"But... which one would be the honest answer?"

"Both," he said quietly, and my insides were spontaneously combusting with the sound of his voice. Torched and melted, my heart beat frantically over nothing. "Of course I couldn't ever lie with the way I feel about you, but when I think about it, the second answer makes more sense, though it's kind of just the same as saying how I feel."

I shifted around, laying next to him on my side. "How?" I asked, and I wondered if I sounded as breathless and desperate to him as I did to myself. I wanted to know, more than anything. "How do you feel?" His eyes opened slowly, then flicked over to me and he turned his head, not smiling.

It was intense for a long while as we laid there, so close, not touching except for our hands which were intertwined right between us, and staring into each other's eyes. Without realizing what I was doing, I began to lean in toward him, a sort of compulsion to be even closer, and he met me half way, kissing me softly before pulling back. "I don't think you're ready to know yet." And then he stood up, smoothed my hair from my face, said his goodbye, and left me alone, exasperated, and pink faced laying on Olette's bed.

---

WOO!

That was INTENSE! lol

Well what did you _think _was gonna happen?

Awww, poor hayner, but fear not! Namine has her fair share of filthy tricks... muahahahaha!

Anywhozzzzz, nichole, if you EVER survive my story for this long, I salute you, and give you props in front of any and all who happen to read this end thingy majigger. :)

NEXT CHAPTER PREVIEW!

"_What about Hayner?" I asked, fiddling with the hem of my, or rather, Olette's dress._

"_What about him?" She asked, keeping her eyes on the gronud._

_I grabbed her arm and stopped walking. "You tell me." I jerked my chin before us, and she looked up, eyes widening when she saw the blonde haired boy walking toward her, with a single orange hibiscus in his hand._


	16. Chapter 16

Ohoho! What happens now?!?! Okay, many thank yous!!

THANK YOU-

all my readers.

everyone who had ever reviewed/favorited/put an alert on this story.

All my friends who are supportive of my writing.

Tetsuya Nomura(had to thank him!)

Namine and Roxas for being amazing :)))))

All my fellow writers for ROCKING and inspiring me greatly

everybody and anybody who showed me an inspiring song (btw, total silence helped to write THIS chapter)

and most of all for this chapter, roxaskh who gave me my one hundredth review, THANKS!!!

Chapter 16:

_It was intense for a long while as we laid there, so close, not touching except for our hands which were intertwined right between us, and staring into each other's eyes. Without realizing what I was doing, I began to lean in toward him, a sort of compulsion to be even closer, and he met me half way, kissing me softly before pulling back. "I don't think you're ready to know yet." And then he stood up, smoothed my hair from my face, said his goodbye, and left me alone, exasperated, and pink faced laying on Olette's bed._

And in no time, Olette was sitting down next to me. I hadn't even realized how long I must have been laying there, but my time with Roxas was over, and I had just let him walk out. STUPID!!! I felt like those comparison trash bags on Hefty ® commercials. You know, the ones that can't hold in all the trash? _Wimpy, wimpy, wimpy! _That was me. Too incapable of holding all of Roxas's emotions (which were SOOOOO not trash!!) and breaking, just laying there when he left.

"Olette," I sat up, and she looked over at me.

"I already called Kai and Selphie. They say the understand, and we'll all hang out some other time." She smiled at me half heartedly.

It was silent for a few minutes when I asked, hesitantly, "So, you want to tell me about earlier?" And then the waterworks began. I'd never really seen Olette cry, she'd always been so contained, but now she was balling, and I was hugging her and handing her tissues from a box by her bed and soothing her, and patting her back, and doing everything I could just to get her to calm down. Eventually, she was able to speak again. "Olette," I said softly. "Hayner really likes you. I mean, I know you don't like him back, but you could at least give him a chance and–"

"What?" She sobbed. I didn't think that was asking too much... just one date... "You thought I didn't _like _him?" She bellowed, sniveling every few words.

"Well," I looked away. She _did _like him?! What?! "I guess..."

"Namine, I'm so scared of him." I furrowed my eyebrows and looked back at her, confused. "The way he makes me feel... It's so intense. I can't even... I can't really put it into words... It's just... he always makes me feel so amazing, even when he's not trying, or when we're just on the phone, even with everybody else around." I get it now. She was scared to feel so strongly about him. I wanted to tell her I understood, that I sometimes felt that way with Roxas, but she spoke first. "I figured out what it was a long time ago. Namine... I'm in love with him."

"Namine... I'm in love with him."

My eyes widened and my jaw dropped. What? What? "What?"

"I know." She lowered her head as if she were ashamed. "But I don't _want _to be. I feel like... He's the one, Namine, I know it. I want to be with him forever, but I'm so young. I'm not supposed to feel this way about anyone until I'm old and grey and peeling! Or at least twenty!"

I smiled. "Olette, you're mind wants a fairy tale, one like you see when you watch movies, but your _heart _wants Hayner. And he's here, right now. If you don't take your chance, he might not be here forever. Do what makes you happy, not what keeps you afraid. I promise that once you give him a chance, you won't be scared anymore, and you'll be so glad that you won't be able to imagine life without him anymore."

She teared up again. "That's exactly my biggest fear." I drew back just slightly. "I _already _feel that way about him, and it isn't fair. It's not fair to me for having no control over my heart, and it's not fair to him for me to keep him waiting with no answer, without ever acknowledging his feelings. What if I _do _give him a chance, and everything you just described comes true? And then what if I _do _have to imagine life without him, because what if he finds someone better...?"

I put my arm around her again. "Impossible." She closed her eyes and laid her head against my shoulder. I didn't have to ask to know who she wished I was at the moment. "Olette, I can't make your decision for you, and I'm not going to try, but I'm going to tell you what the _right _thing is. You, Hayner, and noone else around."

After a few more minutes of similar conversing, Olette told me that a long time ago, she had promised herself not to fall in love with Hayner. As far as she was concerned, not letting herself have him was the only suitable punishment. "Eventually he'll move on and be happy with someone who can be happy with him." She didn't even realize that once she _was _with him, she _would _be happy.

"Olette," I said suddenly, inspiration dawning on me. "I know just what you need." She looked up at me with her big green, watery eyes, and waited. "Girls night. Just you and me, no Roxas, no Hayner, no thoughts about stupid, ridiculous, idiot boys, because they torture us and they suck. Okay?"

She laughed a little, and agreed. "Perfect!" I exclaimed, trying not to sound as excited as I was. "We want to look _gorgeous _though, not that you don't already," She smiled at me again. "So do you have anything I could borrow?"

"Yeah, sure. I'll um," She wiped her eyes, a bright smile now positioned beautifully on her face. "I'll lay out some dresses you could borrow."

"Perfect," I said again, grinning ear to ear. "Hey, I'll be right back." I jutted my thumb back over my shoulder. "I'm gonna just go to the bathroom real quick while your laying those out." She nodded, already excited and digging through her closet and I rushed, perhaps a little too quickly to the bathroom on the other side of the house, instead of the one closest to her room.

I wanted to ensure that she wouldn't hear me. "Roxas," I said quietly when he picked up the phone. "I need you to do me a favor..."

I snapped my phone shut, smiling contentedly, and rushed back to Olette's room, but not after washing my hands, without drying them, to add effect to the illusion. I got back into the room and flicked water at her from my hands, she just smiled at me and ushered my attention to the bed, where she had laid out several amazing(classy, magnificent, yet somehow casual enough) dresses out.

There was one that was a pale orange, which I knew would have to be the one for her(it was an amazing color with her eyes), one of a slight pink, bright yellow, a clean white, a few in differing shades of blue, and one that was iridescent, with a glowing green tint. Though they were all beautiful, I chose the white one, and turned around to begin changing. She did the same with the orange.

After we had prepared ourselves for an amazing night (for which her plans were not quite as accurate as mine) we looked even better than we felt.

Olette had her usually braided hair down, it was wavy and provided a perfect frame for her kind face. Her green eyes stood out against the pale orange of the dress, which was hemmed, at the same length as mine, just above her knees. There were two straps on each side of her dress, and a clip in her hair that matched perfectly with the dress and shoes. The material over the top had a sort of ruffled effect, but it cut off with elastic just below the line of her chest. She was absolutely radiant.

My hair was down, droll as usual, but made the simplicity of the dress look even better (and though I don't want to sound conceited, I really do think I looked good). The dress was simply white, cut off above my knees, billowing out just slightly, and tied just below my chest with a two-inch-wide blue ribbon that matched the barrette in my hair. I was wearing white shoes that I had borrowed from Olette, heels that ran with ribbon-like straps up the calves of my legs, and one of those thick plastic bracelets, white of course.

Standing next to each other, we looked even more magnificent. I checked the time quickly on my cell phone. I had stashed it at the back underneath the blue ribbon, unable to pull off the purse look as well as Olette. It was just about time to be leaving.

"You ready to go?"

"You seem like you're in a hurry, Namine." Olette smiled at me. "This is a way for me to relax right?"

"Yeah," I tapped my foot nervously. We couldn't be late. "And to get your mind off of stupid, ridiculous, idiot boys who torture us and suck, but..." I tried to think of a plausible reason for wanting to leave so soon. "But I–"

"Calm down. I'm ready. Let's go." I sighed in relief. I'd had nothing. Glad to be going, I practically skipped merrily all the way to the park. Throughout the housing areas we lived in, there were pretty little parks around almost every corner. We walked slowly around the curvy little paths that made way through the grassy areas of the park. Though it wasn't particularly dark out, the street lights flickered on. I smiled inwardly. Perfect timing. I saw the silhouette of a familiar boy against the background far off. We kept walking.

"So, I know I'm supposed to take your mind off of boys, and all," She looked down. "But what do you think?"

"About what? Boys? I _think _I'm swearing off of them forever." Eek. Not the answer I wanted.

"What about Hayner?" I asked, fiddling with the hem of my, or rather, Olette's dress.

"What about him?" She asked, keeping her eyes on the ground.

I grabbed her arm and stopped walking. "You tell me." I jerked my chin before us, and she looked up, eyes widening when she saw the blonde haired boy walking toward her, with a single orange hibiscus in his hand. I released her arm, smiling and taking a step back as the scene unfolded before me.

Hayner, looking quite dashing in a coat and tie, hesitantly handed the flower to Olette. Her hand shook as she took it, Tears brimming in her bright green eyes. I held my hands in front of me, watching them as the said nothing, but communicated through their eyes. It was beautiful. Hayner raised his hand to Olette, and her right hand, the one not holding the flower, met his, pressing softly against it before she enlaced her fingers with his. Their intertwined hands still held high, Hayner stroked Olette's cheek delicately. I would have never imagined him with such a gentle side, but here it was.

Suddenly, though nothing(except everything) was happening between the two, I felt as if I was intruding on a very personal display of feelings, and I turned, beginning to walk away, pleased with myself, but a little disappointed for a reason I couldn't quite place.

And then I placed it, because it walked out from behind a tree. "Boo." A smile grew across my lips, and I reached out, plucking from Roxas's hand a small white and pink orchid. My arms extended around his shoulders and his snaked around my waist. I brought my hand to my face to smell the beautiful flower for a second before looking up at him again.

"It's so pretty. I love it, but, you didn't have to come."

"I know. But what would you say if I said I had to see you, again, even though it's only been a few hours?"

I'd say... "I know." He smiled at me, and I at him when I heard Olette's breath catch, as if she was crying. I turned back to find that this indeed was the case.

Her hand, still holding the flower, was pressed up tightly against her face, and Hayner just stood watching her, their hands still locked between them. "Stupid..." She choked out. "Stupid, ridiculous, idiot boy..."

And before even _I _knew what was happening, Hayner was kissing Olette, and from where I stood, it was evident that she was kissing him, back. "Wonderful, amazing, beautiful girl." He said after they'd parted, tilting their foreheads together. "Now, if I'm correct, we have a dinner date." She smiled through her tears, pulling her face from his and nodding, still holding his hand, never letting go.

"But Hayner," He looked back at her. "I promise." He cocked his head to one side. "I promise I'll stop making you chase me, if you promise never to make me run." With a tiny smile, he nodded, and then they were off. "Namine!" Olette called back, barely remembering about me. "Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry! I promised I would stay with you, but..." Then she noticed Roxas. And she smiled. "Oh. Okay. After dinner, Hayner and I will call you, and we'll meet around here again. Is that okay?"

"You know what I think?" Roxas said suddenly. I looked up at him. His arm went around my shoulder and he pulled me closer, a gleam in his eye as he looked out at Olette. "I'd say that's just... Perfect."

---

AWWWW!

Mushy repetition!!

And now, good news, and bad news.

Bad News- we must leave Hayner and Olette (unless I decide to make a oneshot out of their dinner [should I????)

Good News- back to the good ol' fashion Namixas lovin!!!

And here in this chapter (if ever she GETS here) I would like to acknowledge Fae. She is awesome, and amazing, and she rocks my socks every chance she gets. (WOO! GO FAE! thnx for reading it, Fuzzy!!!)

Anyways, although (as mentioned above) this chapter had no inspiring music, it was inspired by a strange/stupid conversation me and my friend had over the phone. Don't ask. It all began with me trying to explain the math homework to my friend, and then getting frustrated from repeating myself. Eventually I was just like, wow. You. Are. Hopeless.

Me:(tone calm and unsurprised) I should pour nitroglycerin on your face and light you up, then leave you in a ditch to explode.

Her:(laughing) You're mean!

Me: Not really, I left Kristi in a hole in south Africa to starve to death and die. (Inside joke)

Her: But she didn't have to explode!

Me: That's true, but stop complaining! Your death is quick and painless, her's is slow and brooding!

Her: haha, brooding...

No, I don't know how that inspired me, but it did. Anyways!! Look forward to the next chapter!


	17. Chapter 17

FORGIVE ME!

Incredibly long wait [plus freakishly short chapter [plus half of it is flashback anyway [plus is the last ACTUAL chapter of the story [plus it kind of sucks anyway [plus I don't like the way im ending this [plus im hecka stealing the epilogue I wrote to another story that I pretty much deleted cause it sucked [equals evil/me/should die/sucks/me(again).

Im so sorry.

I've been caught up in school and everything, but there WILL be more stories, just... this one is almost over.

IM SO SORRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRY!!!!!!!

I LOVE YOU ALL!

Thank you all so much :)

Chapter 17:

"_Namine!" Olette called back, barely remembering about me. "Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry! I promised I would stay with you, but..." Then she noticed Roxas. And she smiled. "Oh. Okay. After dinner, Hayner and I will call you, and we'll meet around here again. Is that okay?"_

"_You know what I think?" Roxas said suddenly. I looked up at him. His arm went around my shoulder and he pulled me closer, a gleam in his eye as he looked out at Olette. "I'd say that's just... Perfect."_

Olette looked at me, smiling, and then turned away, leaving with Hayner, as it should be. And that left me and Roxas alone, again. We stood there watching them disappear for a long time, and then Roxas moved his other arm around me, embracing me warmly.

"Can you believe it?" He asked quietly. I didn't need to ask what. "Can you believe that this has all happened in one day?"

And strangely, I could believe it. It all felt like a dream, but it was far too perfect for me to have made up. My answer to him came in the form of returning his hug, and we stood there-practically in the clouds- for a long time.

Finally, Roxas broke away and moved to the grass, pulling me down to lay with him once he had settled. He pulled me close to him and held me, sweetly silent, and completely comfortable. Could today have been any better? I suddenly began to ponder my future.

Most of the time, you date a lot of people before you fall in love. Sometimes, you fall in love more than once before you find _true _love. Every time, you have something to smile about. I knew I didn't love Roxas, but I also knew that I was well on my way, and I don't know how these things work. Maybe you always feel swept away when you're as deep in as I am, and maybe you always think _"I'll never feel this way about anyone else." _Those things I couldn't control, and I couldn't guarantee. All I knew for sure was that at the moment, or any other time I was with Roxas, or any time I heard his name, or whenever I thought about him, or saw the sky and wished it was as blue as his eyes, or heard the sound of a skateboard and prayed it was him... _Anytime _since I'd even met him, I knew that I didn't _want _to feel that way about anyone else, and I didn't _want _to fall out of love, and I wished I could love him, even though I knew it would only be a matter of time.

I wished we could be together forever. Sitting together on the grass, laying in his arms with my head on his chest, feeling the warmth of his body canceling out the cold of the air. I wanted him to be by my side forever. He was perfection in my eyes. I thought about staying here forever with Roxas, and I thought about how happy that would make me. _Olette would call eventually and end it... _I swiftly pulled out my phone, watched it for a while, and turned it off, laying my head back where it belonged with the boy I cared for most.

"Namine," I snuggled in closer when he said my name, and waited for him to continue. "Tell me about the best day of your life."

"I won't have much to tell," I said quietly. "You were there." He waited, his breathing slow and steady and I began again. "It was either today, or the day I first met you. What about you? Tell me about _your _best day."

"Today. By a long shot." I smiled. "You wanna know why?"

"Sure."

His grip tightened around me ever so slightly. "You agreed to be _mine_," he whispered.

"I'll always be yours," I promised.

"I hope you intend to keep that promise, because it might really break my heart if you didn't."

"If your heart broke, you'd be dead," I laughed a little.

It was quiet for a second, and then, "Fair enough. I hope you intend to keep that promise, because it would kill me if you didn't." My smiled faded into a look of understanding as I realized something.

"Roxas," I began slowly, drawing out his name.

"Hn?"

I wiggled out of his arms and sat up, and he sat up, too. "There's one more thing I want for you to do for me today."

"Anything."

"Before, in Olette's room, you said I wasn't ready to know..." I trailed off. "How you felt about me." He didn't say anything, just watched me silently as his icy blue eyes became dull. I knew he wasn't going to just tell me. "Truth or dare," I asked after some time.

"Truth."

"How did we get so serious so soon?"

"_If Selphie had picked... you for truth or dare, and asked you the same question, what would you have said?" It was quiet for a long time, and I almost spoke again, but he drew out a 'hmmmmm' for a few seconds and cut me off._

"_I wonder..."_

"_You wonder what?" He smiled. He looked so peaceful, like he was sleeping, almost._

"_What I would have said. If it was on the spot, I probably would have just blurted out my feelings for you, but of course, that wouldn't really have answered the question." His feelings for me. I would want to hear that. "If you asked me now, after I had thought about it, my answer would be entirely different."_

"_But... which one would be the honest answer?"_

"_Both," he said quietly, and my insides were spontaneously combusting with the sound of his voice. Torched and melted, my heart beat frantically over nothing. "Of course I couldn't ever lie with the way I feel about you, but when I think about it, the second answer makes more sense, though it's kind of just the same as saying how I feel."_

"How..." He started, and turned his eyes down. When he looked back up at me, he moved in and kissed me, long and sweet, and I returned it with just as much passion. I pulled away first, my hand still on his cheek and stared deeply into his bright blue eyes. And suddenly, no matter what he answered, no matter what he said, it was alright. Everything was going to be okay. And I no longer cared about my outraged father, and I couldn't remember why I spent so much time obsessing over Kairi and Sora when my own love story was falling out in front of me, and I couldn't think of where Olette was anymore, and so many other things just got lost inside me, and he answered simply, "I love you."

And I smiled.

---

and... what do you think? Be honest.

I know, it's horrible, and too short, and everything else possibly horrible in the world

just take your disappointment out on me because I TOTALLY deserve it.

Again, im totally sorry, and im an awful person, and blah.


	18. Epilogue

Epilogue

He pulled me back into his arms, and I could do nothing to resist. As we sat together in the grass, watching the stars and waiting for never, life became perfection.

"Namine," Roxas said softly. "Can we stay like this forever?"

"You know we will."

13 years later... (3rd person POV)

Roxas looked through a photo album as a short brunette girl lay asleep with her head on his shoulder. "I love you," He whispered, kissing her head. "More than the world." He went back to the pictures and came across several with Namine. "Wow..." He said softly, so as not to wake the girl up. "That was a long time ago. We were so happy."

"What are you looking at?" Another girl's voice said. She had dark blonde hair, and she was taller than the other girl, frowning when she saw her asleep next to Roxas. "What is _she _doing here?"

Roxas scowled. "Don't worry about it."

The girl huffed and folded her arms, stubbornly repeating her question. "What are you looking at?"

"Just some old pictures." A third woman sat down on his lap, also careful not to wake the sleeping girl up. She wrapped her arms around his neck and looked into the book he held.

She frowned. "I thought you got rid of those."

"Why would you think that?" Roxas asked, still flipping through the photos.

"Because I remember asking you to." She said pointedly.

"And I remember saying no."

"Roxas," She whined, and he smiled up at her.

"Why do you want them gone? It's not like there's anything horrible about me remembering my past."

"_Our _past," She corrected him.

"Relax, Namine. You look beautiful in the pictures. Almost as pretty as you are, now."

Namine smiled and kissed him softly.

"Um, ew?" The second girl dismissed herself, as the two laughed softly. "Night mom. Night dad."

"Good night."

After looking through the album together for a few more minutes, Roxas spoke up softly. "Namine, thanks."

"For what?"

"For everything." Roxas kissed her cheek and nudged her off of his lap.

"I can't believe you let her stay up so late with you. You know, her first day of second grade is tomorrow."

"She'll be fine." Roxas picked up the small girl. Their second beautiful daughter. He put her in bed and tucked her in. They went to the door of her bedroom and watched her sleeping for a while before walking down the hall to their own room. Just before Roxas closed the door, Namine stopped him.

"I love you," She said simply.

And he smiled.

Roxas kissed Namine and held her in his arms, like he did13 years ago to watch the stars. "Namine, can we stay like this forever?"

"You know we will."

The End.

---

hahaha! Roxas looked like a pimp!

what do you think?

Was it an okay ending?

It was an epilogue, so it didn't have to be miles long, but still, kinda short. Though I want to thank everybody for everything in this story and all my inspiration and drive to write, I want to specifically thank Lauren, the most amazing author on this planet, and one of my very best friends.

I also wanted to say thanks to Nikki and say that I really hope she doesn't move, because if she does, my prime inspiration will be somewhere down in Bakersfield, and that's just not right.

Thanks.

I'm so excited to write more!


End file.
